Railways
Deaths on European railways dropped by 9% last year, according to new data released by the International Union of Railways. Deaths have fallen by 26% since 2010, while train kilometres have increased slightly over the same period. 80% of deaths last year were caused by what the UIC calls ‘external factors’, mainly trespassing on railways and collisions at level crossings.
The European Commission has decided to refer Lithuania to the Court of Justice of the EU for failure to correctly implement European rules on rail safety. Under EU rules, Member States must establish a safety authority and an independent accident and incident investigation body as well as defining common principles for the management, regulation and supervision of railway safety. Lithuania is accused of not ensuring the independence of the investigation body and, in doing so, preventing the transparent investigation of serious accidents and incidents.
2 June 2015 is International Level Crossing Awareness Day. Antonio Avenoso, Executive Director of ETSC said: “It is wrong that hundreds are still dying unnecessarily every year in Europe at level crossings. In the long run, we need to replace them with bridges and underpasses. But right now, much more can be done. High-risk level crossings must be identified from the data and prioritised for infrastructure improvements. And we need better enforcement and education to get the message across that level crossings can still […]
96 passengers and 27 staff were killed on Europe’s railways in 2013 according to figures released in October by the International Union of Railways (UIC). The UIC says passenger deaths increased for the first time since 2010 due to ‘exceptional’ railway incidents in 2013. A single crash, the Santiago de Compostela high-speed train derailment in July 2013 accounted for 79 deaths. In addition, 279 level crossing users died, and 643 ‘trespassers’ i.e. people present on railway premises where such presence is forbidden. UIC says […]
A new online video published today for International Level Crossing Awareness Day hopes to better inform policymakers and the public of the dangers associated with level crossings. Level crossing fact file • The International Union of Railways (UIC) estimates that there are over 600,000 level crossings in the world. • According to 2012 figures published in the European Railway Agency (ERA) safety performance report 2014: There are 114,000 level crossings in the EU; There has been a 2% decrease in the number of level crossings […]
Executive Summary Transport crashes in the EU killed about 39,200 EU citizens in 2001, cause over 3.3 million casualties and presently cost over 180 billion Euros, around twice the total EU budget for all activity. Nowadays road crashes in the EU lead to 97% of all transport deaths and to more than 93% of all transport crash costs and are the leading cause of death and hospital admission for citizens under 50 years. Road crashes cost more than congestion and pollution, or cancer and […]