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...when they either blast their horn passing through a station, making me jump a mile, or when they're going too fast coming up to a red signal and brake, making the most horrendus, ear-splitting screeching sound on the brakes. This is especially prevelant at Westbury!

Not to mention when they hold up passenger trains  ;)

But infinitely better than 20/30/40 juggernauts on the road!

The other day a freight train came through Maidenhead station on the relief line at quite a rate.. By the time it had gone, every single passenger had large amounts of grit in their eyes.... I assume it was something the train was carrying as that doesn't usually happen..

 ::)   the horn is sounded as a warning !  ::) some passengers/people on platforms are oblivious to non stopping trains and lean over the edge or items they are holding/carrying are precariously held in the line of fire of said trains.
           Should someone be injured or God forbid killed, one of the first questions the driver is asked by the coroner is "did you sound your warning horn?" if not the driver is/can be charged with manslaughter.

As for speeding upto a red signal I very much doubt that. These trains wagons have a minimum of four wheels (one on each corner) each with a brake block multiply by say 40 and add another 16 wheels with 32 brake blocks for the loco and thats alot of steel rubbing together.

And freight is what actually keeps the rail system alive, it is the money from freight that allows passenger trains to exist. The passenger services could not afford to finance all the infrastructure needed alone without pricing its services out of the reach of the majority of us.

It is the signalman that decides which train occupies which bit of track so they hold up your trains.

Not being funny (mean funny) I just thought I'd try and explain the reason for what seems an annoyance.
 8) 8)

Occasionally they've done it when it was just me there- half way along the platform! Not sure if it was a greeting but boy it was loud! And I'm sure the other times people weren't leaning over the platform  edge, or anything  ;D

As for the speed problem...I didn't mean they speed up at a red, just that they don't approach it slow enough and have to break heavily to stop in time. That's when you get that horrendus sound that usually forces me to jam my fingers in my ears!

Freight Trains will approach a red no faster than 25mph

Well, I have to say that I do sympathise with any train driver who sounds their horn as they approach a station.  I'm constantly startled as to how close some people stand to the edge of the platform when a train approaches - particularly through trains!

That painted yellow line is there for a reason, I think??   ::)

For those of us who work at track level we have to be in a position of safety 10 seconds before the train pass which at speeds under 100 mph is 1,25 metres but Joe public don't have to work to the rule book, I must admit it does worry me at times how passengers have a total disregard for their own safety and even worse for that of their fellow passengers when waiting on a platform

Example today, I had 2 ladies looking over the edge of my platform (for a piece of a phone charger), twice before 2 HSTs arrived did I have to tell them to step back or they'd have been looking for their heads too.

Unbelievable and scarily totally oblivious ::)

Some very interesting observations on people behaviour on stations. the ones that worry me most are those that stroll along the platform with their back to the trains edge side of the yellow line talking on their mobiles completely oblivious of where they are and the 3000 ton freight train bearing down on them. Must be a great worry to the driver that hooting might cause them to be strartled and lose balance and fall onto the track.

We've banned mobiles while driving perhaps we should ban them on  stations!

As an ex railwayman I find that I tend to instictively stand facing the trains, I presumme it must have been drummed into me during training but I'm not aware of how it was imparted, probably a (metaphorical) clip round the ear from the Inspector when I stood too close. I actually feel uncomfortable walikng along a platform with my back towards the trains (especialy HSTs)  and tend to keep well into the fence or wall.

But how do you impart this to the great British public? Maybe FGW,  EWS et al could post drivers on stations where this a problem to do a bit of education of the dangers. Chiltern are doing this with a foot crossing North of Ayesbury which will soon have more trains with the new Ayesbury ? station.

Electrify the yellow line on the platform so passengers get a shock when they step over it.

Is that a man with a H&S book in his hand?  I'll get my coat...   ;)

The yellow line seems to have virtually no impact. Perhaps between the yellow line and the platform edge there should be red painted hatching with yellow 'no standing' stencils every 10 metres to emphasise what it really means? The depth of the yellow line from the edge of the platform should also reflect the speed of the line through the platform - to have it the same distance from the platform edge at Ealing Broadway (125 mph) and Oxford (25 mph) seems illogical to me.

That's a fair point, IndustryInsider - it does seem rather odd to have the same distance in those examples.

Clearly there is a 'danger zone' at the outer edge of platforms - after all, that's why the safety railings don't go right up to the edge, and we have all this 'rubber mat / trip hazard' nonsense:

(http://www.raildocuments.org.uk/apr08photos/130408nailsea18.jpg)

How about adding an extra bit to the station announcements: "The train now approaching platform x (does not stop here / is the 00:00 to y).  Please stay behind the yellow line until the train has (passed / reached a complete stop)" as appropriate?

Andrew, if you're listening ... ?

Chris  ;) :D ;D

Not only platforms my friends..... but Sydney Gardens just outside Bath Spa on the upside (toward London)
When in the gardens it is not possible to hear approaching trains so what do the world and his friend do?
I'll tell you ! they dangle their precious infants on/over the bath stone wall with only a tenuous grip stopping their offspring from falling into passing trains. No wonder I am going grey!!!
Locals campaigned to have rule book changes made for "noise pollution" reasons in this area so the residents are happy but trains drivers blood pressure rises we are filled with dread passing by these irresponsible nuts.
As the wall is historically protected and it's not possible to put protective fencing on it it would be safer to put fencing four feet in front of the wall preventing Joe public getting too close!

Chris - Announcements at stations fitted with them already announce to stand back when a train is not scheduled to stop.

Thanks, Liam.

Well, they don't at (just for example) Nailsea & Backwell ... ?  Through trains hammer through at up to line speed (100mph) with no advance anouncements at all - certainly nothing about standing well back!

Chris.  ;)

The safe distance is a DoT (HRMI) spec and not that of NR or TOC.  The reason why the "cattle grid" arrangement shown in the photo and not take the fence to the platform edge is due to loading gauge constraints.   I suppose the only real answer is the type of platform screen and gates used on the Jubilee Line Extension but then these are only installed at indoor stations.

It can not be to bigger problem otherwise there would be a major poster and TV advertising campaign like the "don't run the risk" for level crossings

I never said it was NR or TOC's that specified the distances. I am however suggesting that those responsible for them (as you say, probably HMRI) allow them to be more flexible and sensible in their application. Under 25mph at 2', under 50mph at 2'6", under 100mph at 3', and over 100mph at 4' for example. My suggestion of red hatching and yellow stencilling helps them stand out. The situation now is very hap-hazard, certain stations with fast through services have no lines at all, and some slow platform tracks have thick lines painted a huge distance from the platform edge.

Whilst it's not as big of a problem as level crossings - where of course the consequencies are potentially much more serious than some idiot being bowled over standing with his head off the edge of the platform - from the accounts on here and from my own experience over the years, it is a very common risk that passengers expose themselves to.

In regard to the announcements, most stations I travel to have them, although I have known the announcement either to not play/or come on to late (as the train has left the area anyway)/or not play but cis screen displays stand clear message.

Thanks, Ollie!

I rather suspect we're dealing with the relics of the old Wessex public address system at Nailsea & Backwell, then.  We have no announcements of any through trains, and only pre-recorded announcements of the stoppers.

And yes, we rather too often have no announcements and / or no screens at all - that's why I've been so peeved in the past that we haven't had a cheery chap in the ticket office, either!

In the good old days, when we had a regular Station Manager at Nailsea & Backwell (David Jones), Dave used to pop out of his hut, blow his whistle and gesture everyone back behind the yellow line when a through train was due - it worked, every time!

Perhaps this thread opener is tongue in cheek, but it does raise valid points.

I am convinced that there are those who believe that rail  staff are being 'jobsworths' when they ask passengers to 'stand clear', or 'mind the gap',  etc.  Last week, I was roundly abused by the mother of a child whom I had spoken to for riding her 'heely ball' trainers within inches of the platform edge at BTM.

If the blast of an air horn keeps folk safely away from the passage of a heavy and fast moving train, the driver is doing nothing more than his job.

See

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Hamburg_berlin_track_platform_barriers.jpg

for one approach to stopping passengers getting too close to the platform edge.  I am sure it works in Germany but would there be space in the UK and woudl people use it properly?

It wouldn't surprise me if one day they decided to build barriers like those at every station in Britain, better to save the stupid from themselves rather than using the money to expand or improve the network.  ::)

I couldn't believe my eyes the first time I travelled on the Jubilee line extension and saw those perspex barriers and doors to stop people falling off the platform. I mean, if it's necessary, they need to build them everywhere.... if it isn't, why bother doing it at just half a dozen stations?  ???

The company responsible for the above is based in Melksham....
http://www.platformscreendoors.com/

Ironically, the money could probably have been better used paying for a unit to provide Melksham with a proper train service!  ;D

But as we all know, you're not allowed to argue with any argument promoting safety, unless it's to do with roads. I mean, why do we need so much protection from trains? don't they realise that 99.999999% of the time they are unable to leave the rails, unlike cars of course which could do anything at any time, especially if the driver is drunk or on the phone.