Tragic train accidents in Upper Austria: Safety at level crossings in danger!

Tragic train accidents in Upper Austria: Safety at level crossings in danger!

Eferding, Österreich - Today was a tragic day for Upper Austria, because within a few days two fatal accidents occurred at untrained level crossings. These incidents have sparked a heated debate about security at such transitions. Now it is clear that it takes consequences to prevent future tragedies.

The shocking accidents recently took place in Ottensheim and Eferding. On Thursday, an 8-year-old boy, in front of his father and sister, was grasped and killed by a train. Previously, on Monday, there was a similar incident: A 7-year-old boy died after being hit by a train in Eferding. Here, too, his mother and brother were eyewitnesses of the terrible event. In both cases, the traffic light showed red what the children may have overlooked. The train drivers did everything possible to prevent the accidents with a full braking, but unfortunately unsuccessfully.

The situation has now shaken the authorities. State Councilor Günther Steinkellner (FPÖ) expresses his deep sympathy for the families concerned and announces that it will check the existing level crossing. In particular, unsecured transitions should be examined. The politician promised that quick measures to improve security, such as the installation of barriers, should be taken to avoid similar incidents in the future

In order to better understand the problem, it is important to know that around 30 to 40 accidents at level crossings are done in Austria every year, in which people are injured or killed. This number has remained constant for years and throws a disturbing light on safety in untrained transitions. According to Wikipedia , level crossings are equipped with various safety precautions, including plates, Andreas crosses and street signals, but many of them are insufficient or not secured.

The current situation cannot only be limited to Austria. According to a report on Bahnblogstelle.com plans to drastically reduce the number of level crossings in order to reduce the risk of accidents. A look back at the past shows that in Germany the number of level crossings from 28,000 to only around 15,820 has been reduced in Germany since the 1990s. In the same breath, the number of accidents decreased by more than 75%.

What remains is the pressing question: How many tragedies have to happen before the safety at level crossings is improved across the board? The population is eagerly awaiting the announced measures of those responsible and hoping that such accidents will soon be a thing of the past.