Safety gates installed at 34 level crossings

Irangika RANGE

The Railway Department has begun installing safety gates at 34 unprotected level crossings identified as dangerous on the Matara-Colombo railway line, to curb accidents at railway crossings.

"We have decided to instal safety gates at 34 unprotected level crossings identified as most vulnerable and prone to accidents along the Southern coastal line due to the high speed of trains on the track following its recent modernization, "Transport Minister Kumara Welgama said. "We will recruit youth from respective the areas to serve at these gates," he said. A series of fatal accidents have been reported from railway level crossings around the country during the past few months, the coastal line being the most vulnerable. "We will do our utmost to install safety gates and deploy guards at these level crossings," he said.

He said the public were also responsible for some accidents since they often use 'unofficial crossings' on railway lines. The government has allocated Rs. one billion for installing gates at all unprotected railway crossings. He said preliminary measures have been taken to install 200 gates across the island. "There are 612 unprotected railway crossings out of a total number of 915 crossings in the country. He further said the lack of protective gates at crossings is a hindrance to the proper operation of the trains as well as a safety hazard to the public.

"The government is concerned about the increasing number of fatal accidents involving trains at unprotected level crossings and material and human losses as a result. The Railway Department needs at least Rs. four billion to fix electrically operated gates at unprotected railway crossings along the line from Fort to Matara," the minister said..

He added that the installation of gates at unprotected level crossings would help trains to run at a higher speed. The engine drivers reduce the speed when they approach an unprotected level crossing, therefore the benefit of modernization of the railway line had not been fully exploited.