Level crossing stupidity...

[PatB]

Presumably if you live in a town like that you get used to the disruption caused by trains and end up as accepting it as just the way things are.

[melmerby]

That's an interesting railroad crossroads town there.

 

I counted 6 crossings. Would all 6 have been blocked by the train?

The surrounding road are laid out in a grid pattern. So there are A LOT of crossings - it's just how far you have to go to get round!

 

 

Kev.

The Main Street crossings would still be free.

Most of the rail traffic is on the E-W route and to & from the South

Less traffic N-S which is mainly raw steel travelling South (from Chicago?)

 

There are two webcams:

 

Click at the bottom for the 360 cam once you have started the link.

 

Keith

Edited May 26, 2018 by melmerby

[SHMD]

WOW! Just clicked on and within 20 seconds caught this...

This train was travelling at quite a speed (I guess 60-ish?) and sounded fantastic on my PCs surround sound.

 

There were over a hundred of these cars!

 

Kev.

(Although there was no stupidity involved here, I believe this is on topic as the view is of a level crossing!   

 

[melmerby]

There were over a hundred of these cars!

 

Kev.

(Although there was no stupidity involved here, I believe this is on topic as the view is of a level crossing!   

I'll let you off ! There is a road crossing (W Main St) visible above the cooling array on the lead loco.

The train will also cross it a little to the right of that webcam

 

Keith

 

EDIT Did you notice the bounce as trains cross? I think it is worn out as a new prefabricated crossing is sitting at the side waiting to be laid.

The ground also frequently gets waterlogged due to plentiful rain, so that can't help.

Edited May 26, 2018 by melmerby

[SHMD]

The "bounce", of the locos, was obvious and I nearly did comment on it

 

 

Kev.

[APOLLO]

Interesting place is Deshler. Live webcam, look at the second camera for loops mentioned above. I like to watch the trains bounce over the diamonds (soon to be replaced) on camera 1

 

 

Both railroads here are ex B&O, now CSX who are currently in a re-organisational ultra mess.

 

Brit15

Edited May 27, 2018 by APOLLO

[melmerby]

Interesting place is Deshler. Live webcam, look at the second camera for loops mentioned above. I like to watch the trains bounce over the diamonds (soon to be replaced) on camera 1

 

Both railroads here are ex B&O, now CSX who are currently in a re-organisational ultra mess.

 

Brit15

(Drifting off topic from "Level Crossing Stupidity" a bit)

 

Quite a lot of other users as well. I've seen Union Pacific, BNSF, CN & CP as well as some minor operators locos

 

The North-South line connects (generally) in the direction of Detroit & Cincinnati and East-West Chicago & Pittsburgh.

I found the webcams because one is a guest cam on Railcam UK but several are streamed live on Youtube as well so more choices available.

 

Keith

Edited May 27, 2018 by melmerby

[John_Hughes]

Another idiot nearly got into trouble on the Llanbadarn crossing in Aberystwyth yesterday, when a car simply accelerated through after the barriers had begin to fall He nearly managed to snag the barrier on the exit side as he was in panic mode and not too bothered about other road users or anything else.

 

Fool!

[RJS1977]

A crossing I'm rather familiar with having crossed it about 10 times a year over a 9 year period when we lived in Manchester and had a caravan in Pembrokeshire. (And in all those trips we never once got stopped by a train on either crossing!).  Both crossings will feature on the latest version of my 'Aberystwyth and Rheidol Valley' layout.

I only discovered a couple of years ago from an RAIB report following an earlier incident there that the NR and VoR crossings are interlocked so that a VoR train cannot cross its crossing while the NR barriers are down.

[John_Hughes]

A crossing I'm rather familiar with having crossed it about 10 times a year over a 9 year period when we lived in Manchester and had a caravan in Pembrokeshire. (And in all those trips we never once got stopped by a train on either crossing!).  Both crossings will feature on the latest version of my 'Aberystwyth and Rheidol Valley' layout.

I only discovered a couple of years ago from an RAIB report following an earlier incident there that the NR and VoR crossings are interlocked so that a VoR train cannot cross its crossing while the NR barriers are down.

 

Shouldn't, possibly, but there's nothing to physically stop the VoR from using the crossing whenever it likes, surely? And the ng crossing has no road barriers either, unlike its big cousin furher down the road.

[phil-b259]

Shouldn't, possibly, but there's nothing to physically stop the VoR from using the crossing whenever it likes, surely? And the ng crossing has no road barriers either, unlike its big cousin furher down the road.

The red road lights at each crossing etc ARE linked - and as such train drivers will not get a 'OK to proceed indication past both crossings at the same time.

 

Any train driver traversing the crossing without appropriate authority will face disaplinaty proceedings and be sacked unless mitigating evidence of equipment failures can be proved.

[big jim]

When leaving Aberystwyth with a passenger service the guard will push a plunger on the platform, that plunger doesn’t active the crossing but prevents the VoR crossing operating at the same time as the NR one

 

The crossing operates a as a normal AOCL+B

 

If you are coming out of the sidings there are plungers at the groundframe, block marker and one at the crossing itself so there is no excuse not to have pushed one of them, if however you haven’t pushed any of them then the crossing won’t give you a white light to proceed or drop the barriers so if you do go across then you are in big trouble

[Ken.W]

Shouldn't, possibly, but there's nothing to physically stop the VoR from using the crossing whenever it likes, surely? And the ng crossing has no road barriers either, unlike its big cousin furher down the road.

This reminds me of reading of the arrangement here some time ago, and yes they're interlocked so only one will operate at a time.

From what I recall reading of it, as I understand it, the reason to stop the VoR using it's crossing at the same time as NR, is that the two are too close together along the road and this arangement is to prevent any possibility of the second crossing operating  when obstucted by traffic already queuing for the other one.

[beast66606]

Another train / vehicle collision on the Felxstowe branch at Thorpe Lane Level Crossing

 

66708 on 4L02 hit a car which had been driven (allegedly) over the crossing against the red lights - there is a suggestion that substances are involved. There was a child in the car too. All are ok if shaken.

 

708 is damaged - not badly - and cannot be moved until a fitter has cleared it - and the fitter has to travel from Stoke.

 

Thanks to anon for the info.

[MarkC]

Another train / vehicle collision on the Felxstowe branch at Thorpe Lane Level Crossing

 

66708 on 4L02 hit a car which had been driven (allegedly) over the crossing against the red lights - there is a suggestion that substances are involved. There was a child in the car too. All are ok if shaken.

 

708 is damaged - not badly - and cannot be moved until a fitter has cleared it - and the fitter has to travel from Stoke.

 

Thanks to anon for the info.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-suffolk-44424883

 

*shakes head*

[Welly]

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-suffolk-44424883

 

*shakes head*

It makes a change to see the photo caption, "The car hit a freight train..." instead of the usual other way round.

[beast66606]

Allegedly :

 

The driver had an argument with his Mrs and took off in the car, with the kids, had a road rage incident with a cyclist who was stopping for the crossing and went around both, there were drugs involved.

 

I hope the punishment befits the crime here, but I'll probably be sadly disappointed.

 

66708 suffered minor damage to the guard which hangs off the bogies in front of the wheels, once this was resolved the train continued - at around 16:15, some 5 hours after the incident.

[PM47079]

Gbrf locos have forward mounted cameras, hopefully that will be sufficient evidence for dangerous driving

[Penlan]

Another train / vehicle collision on the Felxstowe branch ......... and the fitter has to travel from Stoke.

Just down the road then (or track) ....   

No wonder some simple (railway) needs take so long.

 

Agreed, makes a change for '.....The car hit a freight train....'.

[PhilJ W]

The aftermath.

Another battle between a train and a "missing link" in charge of a road vehicle. 

 

 

34822104_10160599246170438_978900905925541888_n.jpg

[jonny777]

I gather the loco driver assumed he had killed someone for a few hours. How devastating must that be? 

 

However, the two adults and a 16month old baby in the car were not seriously injured. 

 

Words fail me. 

[PM47079]

It is awful believe me. I hope never to be in that situation.

[melmerby]

Suggestion:

How about letting the train driver retire early and the miscreant made to pay his wages until the driver reaches normal retirement age?

 

That would hurt!

 

Keith

[Shadow]

Suggestion:

How about letting the train driver retire early and the miscreant made to pay his wages until the driver reaches normal retirement age?

 

That would hurt!

 

Keith

 

 

Only problem with that is that it will probably be his insurance company who would foot the bill, therefore, we end up paying not him! (Assuming he had insurance!)

 

Edit:- Not saying the driver shouldn't get something. 

Edited June 13, 2018 by Shadow

[Foulounoux]

BBC South reporting today on the issues with Poole High Street

 

Reasonable reporting until they reported asking why the train doesn't cross until minutes after the barriers come down

 

Network Rail response reported as because we have to allow time to ensure the crossing is clear

 

I think what they meant Because we have to wait for the f.....g idiots to behave