Footage released showing near miss at level crossing in Merseyside

Monday 3 Feb 2025

Footage released showing near miss at level crossing in Merseyside

Region & Route:: North West & Central [1]; | North West & Central: North West [2]

A safety warning has been issued to pedestrians to take extra care after a near miss at a level crossing in Southport. Network Rail is urging the public to pay full attention at level crossings following a near miss incident at Crescent Road level crossing in Birkdale on 24 January 2025. The incident occurred at approximately 9:45 am when a female pedestrian didn't take notice of the warning lights and audible signals, coming within half a second of being struck by an oncoming train.

The Crescent Road level crossing is located on the Northern line of the Merseyrail network between Birkdale and Hillside stations, where trains travel at speeds of up to 60 mph.

Simon Shipperd, Network Rail level crossing manager said, "In my time as a level crossing manager, I haven't seen a near miss this close to being a fatality. "The individual appeared to be completely unaware of her surroundings, suggesting she may have been distracted at the time. "Safety is our top priority and we cannot stress the message to pedestrians enough to please take extra care when approaching level crossings."

Chief Inspector Jamie McGowan said: "There is simply no excuse for misusing a level crossing and ignoring safety procedures. Trying to beat the system or failing to pay attention not only puts your own life at risk, but also the lives of the passengers and staff of the oncoming train. "The railways can be incredibly dangerous, which is why people need to do the right thing when using railway level crossings and treat them with respect.

If you see anyone failing to adhere to the safety procedures and putting themselves and others in harm's way, I urge you to report it to us by texting 61016 or by calling us. Always dial 999 in an emergency."

Network Rail emphasises the importance of adhering to safety signals at level crossings to prevent such dangerous incidents. With nearly 6,000 level crossings across the rail network in Britain, safety at these crossings is a top priority.

Over GBP200 million has been invested in improving safety at thousands of crossings since 2009, including closures, building bridges, installing new barriers, and warning systems, and educating the public on safe crossing practices. As part of its ongoing efforts to enhance public awareness, Network Rail has launched the "You've crossed the line" campaign [3]. This campaign aims to make people more aware of their surroundings and the potential dangers when using footpath level crossings.

About Network Rail

We own, operate and develop Britain's railway infrastructure; that's 20,000 miles of track [4], 30,000 bridges, tunnels and viaducts [5] and the thousands of signals [6], level crossings and stations. We run 20 of the UK's largest stations [7] while all the others, over 2,500, are run by the country's train operating companies [8].

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 [9], so we carefully manage and deliver thousands of projects every year that form part of the multi-billion pound Railway Upgrade Plan [10], 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.

References

^ North West & Central (www.networkrailmediacentre.co.uk)
^ North West & Central: North West (www.networkrailmediacentre.co.uk)
^ You've crossed the line" campaign (www.networkrail.co.uk)
^ track (www.networkrail.co.uk)
^ bridges, tunnels and viaducts (www.networkrail.co.uk)
^ signals (www.networkrail.co.uk)
^ stations (www.networkrail.co.uk)
^ train operating companies (www.networkrail.co.uk)
^ a safe and reliable railway (www.networkrail.co.uk)
^ multi-billion pound Railway Upgrade Plan (www.networkrail.co.uk)
^ @networkrail (twitter.com)
^ http://www.networkrailmediacentre.co.uk/ (www.networkrailmediacentre.co.uk)