Management of safety risks at level crossings

The audit examined the rate of progress in improving safety and reducing accidents at level crossings by assessing the management of these risks and the effectiveness of the treatments to address them. Most level crossing collisions happen because pedestrians or drivers are unaware of an approaching train, misjudge its arrival at the crossing, choose to ignore warning signals, or deliberately avoid the barriers designed to protect them. Physically separating or closing roads and footpaths that cross railway tracks would solve the problem. However, the costs of doing this and the impact on the mobility of the people affected, mean these solutions will be the exception rather than the rule. Between 2000-01 and 2008-09 level crossing accidents caused 73 deaths, an average of eight per year. While this is minimal compared with the road toll of about 300 deaths annually, these events are catastrophic for the people affected. There is also a risk of a level crossing collision where many people are killed and seriously injured. This happened when a goods vehicle hit a passenger train in June 2007 at Kerang in regional Victoria, killing 11 people and seriously injuring 12. The damage, beyond loss of life, can amount to millions of dollars.

• Record URL:
  http://www.audit.vic.gov.au/publications/2009-10/240310-Level-Crossings-full-report.pdf
• 
• Availability:
  • Find a library where document is available. Order URL: http://worldcat.org/isbn/9781921650284
• Corporate Authors:

  Victoria. Auditor-General's Office

  Melbourne, Victoria   

  Victoria. Auditor-General's Office

  ,    
• Publication Date: 2010-3

Language

• English

Media Info

• Pagination: 35p
• Serial:
  • Issue Number: 289, session 2006-10

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Highway safety; Railroad grade crossings; Risk management; Traffic crashes; Traffic safety
• Uncontrolled Terms: Road safety (engineering and vehicles)
• Geographic Terms: Victoria
• ATRI Terms: Crash costs; Crash countermeasure; Level crossing; Risk management; Road safety; Traffic crash
• Subject Areas: Railroads; Safety and Human Factors;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 01382120
• Record Type: Publication
• Source Agency: ARRB
• ISBN: 9781921650284
• Files: ATRI
• Created Date: Aug 22 2012 1:01PM