The runaway rail fear that grips a town
WAGONS SMASH INTO CROSSING
by David Taft
FIVE HUNDRED tons of runaway railway stock
threatens to tear through a Somerset mining town every day. For there
are no mechanical safeguards on the line.
Yesterday 24 eight-ton wagons ran out
of control and crashed into a level crossing in the centre of Radstock.
Brakes on the rolling stock did not operate, a British Rail official
told me. Senior railwayman Ken Evans, manning the box at the
junction, (Sic: That’s road junction !)
said that if the runaway wagons had crashed in the rush-hour, there
would have been a disaster.
As it was, no one was injured. But van
driver Mr Cedric Brown, of Welton Road, Radstock, just managed
to reverse his car off the crossing. This would have been impossible
a few hours later when traffic queues form. I found that at 5.40 last
night all six roads into the junction were blocked with cars, buses
and lorries.
The crash sparked off a double row last
night – from railway workers, and shopkeepers at the junction.
RAILMEN demanded safety measures on the line which carries coal
to (Sic: !?) and from nearby collieries.
They want a catch-bind (Sic) point which
would derail runaway wagons before they hit the town. As many as 50
are linked at a time. “Wagons haven’t got out of control here
for more than 15 years until today. But it could happen again tomorrow
if someone forgot the brakes” said one senior railman. SHOPKEEPERS
complained about manning at the crossing
VANISHED
Said butcher Mr Norman Graham: “The
signalman just can’t close the road properly when he needs to.
With six roads joining the railway crossing the gates get stuck half
open and half shut. Every rush-hour, it is chaos here.”
BRITISH RAIL promised an immediate
enquiry into the crash. “I cannot discuss what caused it or might
have caused it,” said district manager Mr Ray Nash. But
I pieced together this picture of events:
- A 32 wagon train was brought from Westbury through Frome yesterday.
- Eight “crippled” stock due for repair were taken off at
the siding in Radstock West.
- When shuntman Mr. Stan Tote arrived to move the others, they
had vanished.
- Then newsagent Mr Malcolm Moon ran up the line out of Radstock
to warn that they had crashed into the crossing.
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