Re: [NSW] Wagga victim's mother's letter to SMH

[Bruce Greening <norrail@optusnet.com.au>]

The installation of lights and booms is a difficult decision for any system,
with many different players and much emotion involved.

There certainly are standards, but tses are often ignored when a pollie wants
something done, or as some times happens, someone is prepared to cough up the
money for a particular location. On occasions a private crossing owner
operating a business (such as a quarry can be 'forced to pay up')

Yhere is a great misconception that installation of booms is the ultimate in
safety. This is not the case, and the number of damaged booms testify to this.
Booms are just a futher visual warning, and in most systems are only installed
on multiple tracks to stop vehicles that have stoped for a train from one
direction crossing in front of a train coming from the other disection.

The other question which needs to be asked, is spending money on booms the
best way to improve overall safety, or could the money be better spent
elsewhere.

tony bailey wrote:

> "Chris Downs" <cvdowns@ozemail.com.au> wrote in message
> JavH6.3342$VM5.108652@ozemail.com.au">news:JavH6.3342$VM5.108652@ozemail.com.au...
> > This letter published in today's Sydney Morning Herald is worth a read
> (copied
> > in full below).  It was written by the mother of one of the 5 dead boy's
> from
> > the Gerogery XPT/car collision.  Very sad but it also clearly shows
> emotion
> > overruling reason on safety (hard to blame the mother though, grief for
> her
> > only son).  Absolutely no responsibility allocated to the car driver
> however
> > and I'm sure it'll hit a sympathetic community nerve.
> >
>
> Again I suggest that the so called "level crossing problem" is not really
> that but a problem with motorists and how they drive - everyone should go
> off and reread the details of the Bulli (NSW) Public School pedestrian
> crossing saga, which reflected many of the same problems seen with level
> crossings and it becomes patently obvious that we do have a real problem
> with car drivers.
>
> --
> Tony Bailey
> Mercury World Travel
> Mercury Travel Books
> mercuryworldtvl@one.net.au

--
Bruce L. Greening

Norrail@optusnet.com.au
http://members.optusnet.com.au/~norrail