Safety call over rail 'near miss' (BBC News)

[RF News]

Changes in safety training for railway track workers are proposed after a "near miss" incident in Sussex.

More from BBC News...

[swisstrains]

The near-miss involved a welder who jumped out of the path of a train with only 3 or 4 seconds to spare.
I was surprised to read in the official report that Network Rail didn't report this incident to the RAIB but that they picked it up themselves from the Network Rail logbook.
http://www.raib.gov.uk/cms_resources...ey%20Green.pdf

[Foghut]

Yea this is one of the routes I sign. The ladder crossing at Tinsley Green enables a wide variety of movements to take place, and just looking at a Sectional Appendix doesn't give the whole story.

Red zone working is inherently risky, I take my hat off to the workers who have to do it in all weathers. I reckon every driver has experienced a moment when track workers on another line have suddenly realised that you are routed across to where they are standing - that's why you're sounding you horn with such vigour!

It looks like the COSS didn't appreciate that trains can be routed from almost any line to any platform at Gatwick. It's a shame that this incident has occurred, as the logical conclusion from this would be to close a line when this sort of work needs to be undertaken in future. Thus making this extremely busy route even more congested.

[swisstrains]

Originally Posted by Foghut

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It looks like the COSS didn't appreciate that trains can be routed from almost any line to any platform at Gatwick. It's a shame that this incident has occurred, as the logical conclusion from this would be to close a line when this sort of work needs to be undertaken in future. Thus making this extremely busy route even more congested.

To perform Red Zone working with minimum risk requires either foolproof procedures or fully-experienced supervision with local knowledge. After reading through the report it appears that both were lacking. What's worse is that this problem isn't just confined to the railways but is also evident in other sections of British industry.