Friday 1 Jun 2012
HELP US STOP LONG EATON RAIL VANDALS
- Region & Route:
vandals on the rail network in the Long Eaton area.
In the last six weeks there have been three attacks on the railway infrastructure in similar locations, with the first at Sawley level crossing on 11 April, where a youth was reported placing objects on the line.
Just two days later, a Nottingham to Birmingham service struck concrete blocks placed on the line, again at Sawley.
The latest and most serious incident took place on 16 May at Draycott footpath crossing (near the M1 road bridge), when a Nottingham to Birmingham train hit concrete troughing lids placed on the line. At around the same time, two male teenagers were seen trespassing nearby. They were described as 14-15 years of age, with one wearing a Liverpool football shirt.
Network Rail’s community safety manager Richard Pedley said: “The people who are committing these crimes are putting themselves and others in serious danger. We appeal to anyone who may have information concerning these incidents to please contact the British Transport Police and help us to catch these vandals before someone is seriously injured or even killed.
“As the nights get lighter, we would also ask parents and carers to be conscious of the whereabouts of their children and to help make them aware of the dangers of trespass on the railway.”
Sergeant Rob Bowley from British Transport Police said: “This recent spate of incidents involving objects being placed on the tracks are deliberate and malicious acts which could so easily have resulted in tragedy. The trains involved had passengers onboard and their safety could have been seriously compromised by this senseless act of vandalism.
“There seems to be determined effort to damage trains and the potential results of these actions really do not bear thinking about. I cannot understand why anyone would do this sort of thing. We will be stepping up patrols in the area and I am absolutely determined to catch those responsible.
“Officers are currently conducting local inquiries into the incident and I would ask anyone with any information that could help our investigation to come forward as a matter of urgency.”
Anyone with information about any of these incidents can call British Transport Police on 0800 40 50 40 or Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.
Notes to editors
Trespass statistics
· From 1 April 2011 to 31 March 2012 there were 49 accidental trespass fatalities (excluding suicides and fatalities at level crossings). *These figures are subject to alteration following coroners’ inquests.
· There were 445 recorded near misses between trespassers and trains, with reports of people crossing the tracks to the opposite platform upon realising their train was leaving from there, jumping down to retrieve phones or wallets, walking alongside the tracks as a shortcut home.
· The peak ages for trespass fatalities are the late teens and the early twenties.
· The percentage of male trespass fatalities is disproportionately high. Although males make up just under 50% of the total population, they have accounted for 88% of trespass fatalities over the past 10 years.
· In more than half of incidents, the reason for the trespass is not known or not identified. In those events where the motivation for the trespass is identifiable, the most common reason (37%) is for the purposes of taking a short cut. Other reasons where the trespass is a means to an end include retrieving property, walking dogs, fare evasion, and committing criminal damage or graffiti.
· Over the past ten years, the greatest number of trespasser fatalities has occurred on a Saturday. The most common time (on any day) for the fatality to occur for those aged 16-30 is between 10pm and 2am. From 2001-2011 there were 205 fatalities in this age group. 75 were during this time period (37%).
(All trespass statistics provided by RSSB – the Railway Safety and Standard Board, www.rssb.co.uk)
Contact information
Passengers / community members
Network Rail national helpline
03457 11 41 41
Latest travel advice
Please visit National Rail Enquiries
Journalists
Network Rail press office - Rachel Lowe
Network Rail
rachel.lowe@networkrail.co.uk
About Network Rail
We own, operate and develop Britain's railway infrastructure; that's 20,000 miles of track, 30,000 bridges, tunnels and viaducts and the thousands of signals, level crossings and stations. We run 20 of the UK's largest stations while all the others, over 2,500, are run by the country's train operating companies.
Usually, there are almost five million journeys made in the UK and over 600 freight trains run on the network. People depend on Britain's railway for their daily commute, to visit friends and loved ones and to get them home safe every day. Our role is to deliver a safe and reliable railway, so we carefully manage and deliver thousands of projects every year that form part of the multi-billion pound Railway Upgrade Plan, to grow and expand the nation's railway network to respond to the tremendous growth and demand the railway has experienced - a doubling of passenger journeys over the past 20 years.
Follow us on Twitter: @networkrail
Visit our online newsroom: www.networkrailmediacentre.co.uk