Stay home, stay safe, stay off the railway: Signals

Friday 17 Apr 2020

Stay home, stay safe, stay off the railway

Region & Route:
Scotland’s Railway: Scotland

Network Rail Scotland is urging the public to stay safe and stay off the railway during the COVID-19 lockdown.

Despite most people observing the government’s guidelines on staying home and social distancing, Scotland’s Railway is still seeing trespass and vandalism on the tracks.

Over 50 trespass incidents have been recorded on Scotland’s Railway since March 20, when Scotland’s schools closed ahead of the full lockdown on March 23.

In recent weeks trespassers have been spotted on rail lines across the country including locations in Glasgow, Lanarkshire, Ayrshire, Renfrewshire, Perthshire and the Lothians:

  • On April 15 four teenagers crossed the line in front of a train near Drumgelloch while a train was forced to brake after two men trespassed on the line in Paisley on April 14.
  • On Easter Sunday, April 12, teenagers were spotted on the line near Paisley St James station and a train was forced to carry out an emergency brake after spotting three trespassers on the line near Annan.
  • On April 7, two teenagers were seen walking on the line near Bowling and a teenage trespasser was on the line near Bearsden on April 5.
  • Two youths were spotted attempting to graffiti trains in the north east of Glasgow on April 3 and on March 31 a female trespasser was on the line near Barrhead station.
  • On March 29 a male trespasser caused disruption to trains near Dunbar on the East Coast Mainline and two adults and a child were seen trespassing near Culloden on March 27.
  • Two trespassers were also seen near Bathgate on March 25 and a teenage trespasser delayed trains near Mauchline on March 21.

With trespass incidents often also increasing during the lighter spring nights and school holidays, Network Rail is urging the public to keep off the tracks.

 Liam Sumpter, Network Rail Scotland route director, said: “During the lockdown keeping your distance doesn’t just mean from other people – it means from the tracks too.

“Trespassing on the railway can be a fatal mistake. Trains take a long time to stop and anyone struck by one will suffer life-changing injuries or worse.

“The railway is also full of hidden dangers – like overhead power lines which can carry up to 25,000 volts and kill instantly.

“We’re urging the public to stay safe and off the railway – allowing us to focus on supporting the country through this crisis by keeping key workers and vital freight services on the move.”

Network Rail works closely with the British Transport Police to keep Scotland’s Railway secure and trespassers and vandals will be prosecuted.

 The public can also help to keep the railway safe by contacting Network Rail’s 24-hour helpline on 03457 114141 to report any locations where trespassers are gaining access to the tracks.

 To find out more about the dangers of railway trespass, visit www.youvstrain.co.uk, the campaign led by Network Rail and the wider rail industry to address the issue of trespass on the railway.

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 - Nick King
Media relations manager (Scotland)
0141 555 4108 / 07515 617073
nick.king3@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.

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