Line problem between Westbury and Bath Spa

[whole diary]

[Chris from Nailsea]

An update, from the Wiltshire Times:

Youngsters escape prison after causing freight train to crash

A pair of youths who left an industrial wheelie bin on a railway line before it was hit by a freight train have walked free from court.

Matthew Robinson, 20, and a 17-year-old lad had both been drinking before the[y] put items on the line as they messed about on the platform at Trowbridge station shortly after 1am.

About four hours later a freight train pulling eighteen empty 100 ton wagons smashed into the obstruction which got wedged under the locomotive.

The incident before the morning rush, caused chaos across the network and First Great Western had to hire coaches to move passengers past the blockage.

In total it was estimated that Network Rail and the train companies spent just short of ^40,000 as a result of the incident.

Claire Marlow, prosecuting, told Swindon Crown Court on Friday that train driver Mark Young was heading towards Bath from Westbury at 5am on Tuesday, October 14.

As he approached Trowbridge station he noticed the large red bin on the line in front of his and despite slamming on the emergency brake ploughed into the object.

She said it took about 1,000 feet for the train to stop by which time the bin was wedged underneath, damaging both train and track.

Fortunately he was uninjured but the train had to be jacked up to remove the bin which had become stuck.

Miss Marlow said transport police looked at CCTV^▸ (Closed Circuit Tele Vision) footage from the station and saw the defendants on the platform shortly after 1am.

Robinson was seen pushing an Asda shopping trolley on to the line but he later moved it away.

Meanwhile he brought the giant bin from outside the station through the concourse and on to the platform where the teenager tipped it on to the rails.

Robinson, of Painters Mead, Hilperton, and the teenager, from Salisbury, pleaded guilty to endangering the life of railway passengers.

Mike Pulsford, for Robinson, said his client was drunk and the time and realised now what he had done was not only stupid but very dangerous. ^Quite frankly it started out as skylarking, of course alcohol being a disinhibiting factor and there being a group of them it went too far. My client never intended for passengers to be put in danger.^ He said they had tried to get the wheelie bin off the track but had been unable to do so as it was so heavy, and from then on they were too frightened to tell anyone about it.

Adam Norris, for the teenager, said his client could not explain why he did what he did on the night in question. He said ^Essentially these two boys were not thinking about what they were doing.^

Passing sentence Recorder Euan Ambrose commented on their failure to alert the authorities to what they had done and avert the crash. ^You put your own risk of getting into trouble above the risk to others,^ he said.

He put Robinson on an 18-month community order with supervision, a think first programme, an alcohol treatment requirement, 80 hours of community service and a curfew from 8pm to 5am on Thursday, Fridays and Saturdays for six months.

The teenager was put on a two year supervision order with a six month intensive supervision and surveillance programme with an 8pm to 5am curfew.

[Lee]

From the Wiltshire Times:

Trowbridge railway vandal avoids jail sentence

A man who was involved in throwing an industrial wheelie bin on to the train line has escaped jail after failing to do his community order.

Matthew Robinson, formerly of Painters Mead, Hilperton, was put on the 18 month programme in June after admitting endangering the lives of railway passengers.

But the 21-year-old has been given another chance after he was found to be in breach of the order for a second time by the probation service.

And Judge Douglas Field, sitting at Swindon Crown Court yesterday, warned him ^Take it from me, if you don^t take advantage of this and you are in breach again you will be in custody.^

Robinson and a 17-year-old, who cannot be named for legal reasons, were messing about on the platform at Trowbridge station in October last year.

In the early hours of the morning they hurled the heavy bin on to the track and left it there across the lines.

About four hours later a freight train pulling eighteen empty 100 ton wagons smashed into the obstruction which got wedged under the locomotive.

The incident before the morning rush caused chaos across the network and First Great Western had to hire coaches to move passengers past the blockage.

In total it was estimated that Network Rail and the train companies spent just short of ^40,000 as a result of the incident.

When he was sentenced another judge put Robinson on an 18 month community order with supervision.

He was also ordered to do a think first programme, an alcohol treatment requirement, 80 hours of community service and a weekend curfew for six months.

But the court heard that he had been on the run since mid November after he failed to attend court having been breached for failing to attend appointments.

Despite it being his second breach the probation serviced said they would continue to work with him and asked he go on a motivation enhancement activity requirement.

Mike Pulsford, defending, said his client had almost completed the community service but was having problems with accommodation.

He said he had been thrown out by his parents and was sofa surfing, currently living with a pal on Kingsdown Road, Trowbridge.

Mr Pulsford said he had been hoping to get work but couldn^t sign on with an agency because he had lost his passport and couldn^t afford a replacement.

The judge allowed the order to continue with the extra requirement and gave Robinson the warning that he could be jailed if he failed again.

A "motivation enhancement activity requirement", eh? That'll do the trick...

[Super Guard]

And some question why people say this country is going to the dogs at times?

Perhaps a County Court Judgement for ^40,000 would have been in order to repay the costs to NR^» (Network Rail - home page)/EWS^▸ (English Welsh & Scottish Railway Ltd, now known as DB Schenker Rail (UK^▸ (United Kingdom)))/FGW^▸ (First Great Western), and also instead of "Meet the Manager" how about "Meet the Arseholes that ruined your morning" and let them have the wroth of commuters!  After all that, they'd probably be begging for custody   

[Chris from Nailsea]

From the Wiltshire Times:

Courts seek teen who vanished after being sentenced for throwing bin on railway line

A judge has issued a warrant for the arrest and detention of a teenager who threw an industrial wheelie bin on to a railway line at Trowbridge.

Jonathan Corry was still only 17 when he was put on a community order for his part in the offence, which led to rail chaos when a freight train ploughed into the obstruction.

But within a couple of months of the sentence being passed in June 2009 he disappeared, despite being electronically monitored.

The case came before Judge Douglas Field, sitting at Swindon crown court on Wednesday, where the probation service asked for the warrant to be reviewed.

The judge said ^He was given a very merciful sentence. Having been sentenced in June 2009 he just disappeared. He was electronically monitored so that they knew he had gone. Inquiries have been made with his local family. There is a suggestion that he may have gone to Carlisle. The police system has no record of his whereabouts.^

The judge was told that the probation service was not asking for the warrant, first issued in November 2009, to be set aside. He said ^I am pleased to hear that, I wouldn^t be minded to do it. This warrant must remain on the police records and must be executed.^

For his part in the offence Corry, now 19, was put on a two-year supervision order with a six-month intensive supervision and surveillance programme with an 8pm to 5am curfew.

He and a pal had been drinking before putting objects on the line as they messed about on the platform at Trowbridge station shortly after 1am on Tuesday October 14, 2008.

About four hours later a freight train pulling eighteen empty 100 ton wagons smashed into the heavy bin, which got wedged under the locomotive.

CCTV^▸ (Closed Circuit Tele Vision) footage showed the older youth pushing a shopping trolley on to the line, but he later moved it.

Meanwhile he brought the giant red bin from outside the station, through the concourse and on to the platform where Corry tipped it on to the rails.

The pair said they wanted to move it but it was too heavy so they fled, failing to raise the alarm.

The incident, before the morning rush, caused chaos across the network and First Great Western had to hire coaches to move passengers past the blockage.

In total it was estimated that Network Rail and the train companies spent just short of ^40,000 as a result of the incident.

Corry, who gave the court an address in Salisbury, and his friend from Hilperton, pleaded guilty to endangering the life of railway passengers.