VIDEO. Crossing the railway requires vigilance and safety measures
In the ten months of this year in Estonia there have been five cases of people hit by a train and five suicides. Rail traffic is and will remain dangerous for road users, because there are more trains, timetables are increasingly tighter and speeds increase. All this requires greater safety measures and greater vigilance also on the part of pedestrians.
For residents in the Nõmme neighborhood trains run every day. In the west direction trains run faster than before and new electric trains will be added in the coming years. This invites citizens to pay more attention.
“There are high-speed trains on the line, and the Pääsküla-Balt station line also passes through trains going from Balti station to long-distance lines, i.e. not all trains stop at the stations,” said Karmo Kuri, the elder of the Nõmme district. Where should the inhabitants of Nõmme pay particular attention? “It is worth looking at it in a way where there is the best visibility, places where there are curves and a train can come from around the curve, you need to pay more attention to the level crossing,” Kuri said.
Tunnels have been built in the Tallinn region in recent years. Traffic lights and an acoustic signal have been installed at the crossing of the watercourse. Fences have been erected throughout the city. Traffic lights may not be visible to pedestrians in hot or foggy weather.
“Any technical solution is a help and does not guarantee that no more accidents will occur. Veerenni, for example, is a place where traffic lights are useful,” said Tarvi Viisalu, head of safety at Estonian Railways.
Every year Estonian Railways builds four or five tunnels. According to the directive of the Minister of Climate, in future level crossings will have to be divided into categories.
“Depending on the category, equip yourself with equipment or build tunnels for specific speeds,” Viisalu said. Along the railroad tracks were “Beware of the Train” and “If You Win a Minute, You Lose a Life” signs. Viirsalu acknowledges that there are new signs warning people to be careful: “If you encounter a level crossing, there is a yellow warning sign directly next to the barriers preventing movement at the level crossing, with the words ‘Caution , train’ written in big letters.” Grandma Eevi, having just gotten off the train, confirms that she and her grandson often talk about traffic: “It’s the second time we get on the railway and I told him these things, but when I’m traveling on the city bus I explained more to him and he knows these things.”
2023-12-06 19:10:06
video-crossing-the-railway-requires-vigilance-and-safety-measures