Dangers

Children and teenagers are not always aware of the dangers in the railway environment. Of course, areas created for the travelling public are safe: stations, platforms, trains, level crossings and footbridges. But if you go to areas you are not supposed to go, you will put yourself in serious danger.

Trains can’t stop quickly

Play the video to see what it looks like for the driver. Trains can’t swerve and they can’t stop quickly. If someone is in the way, there’s nothing the driver can do to stop hitting them.

Trains can travel at 125 mph and take the length of 20 football pitches to stop. If you are in the way the train won’t stop - the driver will not see you until it’s too late.

Up to 60 people are killed on the railway every year by crossing the tracks, taking short cuts or playing chicken.

Trains can drag you under their wheels

Trains produce enormous amounts of wind turbulence. This slipstream is so powerful that it can drag you under the wheels of the train if you are standing next to the track or too close to the platform edge.

You can’t hear a train coming

Modern trains are deceptively silent – and extremely fast. A train travelling at 125 mph takes only 7 seconds to travel a quarter of a mile. It is never safe to take a short cut across the tracks – it may cut your life short.

When is it safe to cross the tracks?

The only safe way to cross the railway tracks is in a place that is designed for crossing:

• A bridge or subway
• A railway crossing – also called level crossing

Most crossings have a sign and lights or bells that alert you if a train is coming. Many crossings also have gates that close if a train is coming.

When crossing tracks at a railway crossing, follow these rules:

1. Stop and look both ways before crossing the tracks. Listen for the train coming and for warning bells. If there are lights, watch for them to flash. Remember a number of modern trains are deceptively silent – and extremely fast.
2. If a train is going by, stand well back from the tracks.
3. Never try to cross the tracks if a train is coming. It is too dangerous and you will never cross in time. It can take up to 1½ miles for a train to come to a complete stop – that's about 20 football fields.
4. If a train goes by, look both ways again before crossing. Make sure another train is not coming. Many crossings have more than one track, which means there could be more than one train at the same time.
5. Never play on or near train tracks. It is dangerous and illegal.

The electricity is never switched off

Some trains are powered by electricity which is never switched off. In some parts of Britain, the electricity runs through a rail on the track and in others through the overhead power lines.

In both cases the power is strong enough to kill you.

Electricity on overhead power lines can jump and arc

You do not have to touch the overhead power lines to get electrocuted. The electricity can arc like lightning or jump up to 3 metres (9 feet) so you can get electrocuted if you or anything you are holding gets within this distance from the lines.

You can also get electrocuted if you fly a kite or dangle things from bridges near the overhead power lines.

The shock will almost certainly kill you instantly – but if you do survive, you will suffer from horrendous injuries for the rest of your life.

Power lines on the ground

Where electricity is provided on the rail, there is a third rail running along the railway line. This third rail looks like a normal rail but it is actually a power line. The electricity is so strong that if you touch the rail or step on it, you will stick to it like glue and won’t be able to get off.

The electricity is likely to kill you – and if you do survive, you will suffer terrible burns.