Deaths on the line

[fandroid]

It's been a depressing eight days. On the evening of Saturday 7 Feb I was at Reading station when all services into and out of Paddington were stopped as someone was on the line further in. I don't know if that was a death or a trespasser. On Tuesday morning all trains on the SW mainline were halted as there was a body on the line at Basingstoke. I got to London via Reading that time. Yesterday (Sat 14) a train out of Paddington hit someone at Slough. Someone I knew was actually on the train. All services were again halted and, as a result, my daughter was unable to travel to meet me.

Is it getting worse, or was this just a very bad week?

 

[Bald Rick]

It's been a depressing eight days. On the evening of Saturday 7 Feb I was at Reading station when all services into and out of Paddington were stopped as someone was on the line further in. I don't know if that was a death or a trespasser. On Tuesday morning all trains on the SW mainline were halted as there was a body on the line at Basingstoke. I got to London via Reading that time. Yesterday (Sat 14) a train out of Paddington hit someone at Slough. Someone I knew was actually on the train. All services were again halted and, as a result, my daughter was unable to travel to meet me.

Is it getting worse, or was this just a very bad week?

Bad week. This week always is (note today's date).

 

[ComUtoR]

Bad week. This week always is (note today's date).

"silly season"

Winter is always a bad time of the year. There are a fair amount of life events over this period. Its worth noting that any time of the year where there is a significant life event then there will be a rise.

 

[edwin_m]

It's the price we pay for society's expectation that everyone should be happy, particularly at certain times of year. Anyone who isn't feels doubly excluded.

 

[sarahj]

I've heard that this can be a bad time of the year, Christmas is over, but the bills are now coming in.

 

[plymothian]

And yet there is still little sympathy from some quarters about suicides and demands that "things must be done".

 

[ComUtoR]

And yet there is still little sympathy from some quarters about suicides and demands that "things must be done".

They are right. Things must be done.

Is there someone in your life you haven't heard form in a while ? Give em a tinkle.
See someone clearly down in the dumps ? what about a friendly hello.
Work colleague not their usual self ?

The government are stamping down on pay day lenders. Mental health issues are getting more press than ever before. The railway have internal campaigns and organisations like the Samaritans are working closely with NR. Suicide is a societal issue and we can all lend a helping hand.


Pick up the phone : 116 123 (free to call)
Email : [email protected]

 

[route:oxford]

I sometimes wonder if Jubilee Line style doors should be considered for the GWML East of Reading.

It would limit station calls to a specific design of unit and need skilled or automated driving to call at exactly the right place though. On the balance of probability - worth doing.

 

[syorksdeano]

Mental Health is quite rightly getting getting a lot of press at the moment as there is a problem.

The government know that their is a problem as well, but their answer is to cut funding

 

[Carlisle]

I sometimes wonder if Jubilee Line style doors should be considered for the GWML East of Reading.

It would limit station calls to a specific design of unit and need skilled or automated driving to call at exactly the right place though. On the balance of probability - worth doing.

would it make much difference,? Determined people would just choose to either walk down the line or climb the fence at another point

 

[edwin_m]

I sometimes wonder if Jubilee Line style doors should be considered for the GWML East of Reading.

It would limit station calls to a specific design of unit and need skilled or automated driving to call at exactly the right place though. On the balance of probability - worth doing.

Probably impossible unless any non-stopping trains pass the platform very slowly, due to the aerodynamic forces on the doors at higher speeds. Even if only fitted on the Relief lines, restricting the freight speed would create capacity problems.
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I've heard that this can be a bad time of the year, Christmas is over, but the bills are now coming in.

Christmas can be very challenging for the lonely. Not only are they lonely but there is a perception that everbody else is having a good time, or alternatively having a go at them for being a Scrooge.

 

[fandroid]

It's a complex subject. Someone else that I know well suffers badly from depression in the winter months. She was telling me that the brighter days that we are now getting have made a big difference to her personally and she now feels able to get on with life.

Although Jubilee line style doors would have to be extraordinarily robust to deal with air pressures from 125mph trains passing through, less sophisticated barriers might work if made from wire mesh on steel frames. There is a a type of welded mesh, often coated in green, that seems to be a favourite where security is needed but palisade fencing is deemed to be too ugly.

 

[FQ]

Bad week. This week always is (note today's date).

What has todays date got to do with it? Sunday 14th of Feb?

 

[najaB]

What has todays date got to do with it? Sunday 14th of Feb?

It's Valentine's day and... [ your partner died recently / you are unable to form lasting relationships / you've been dumped for a younger person / etc. ]

 

[FQ]

Ah, shoot! One of the named days that I don't bother with at all!

 

[rebmcr]

I sometimes wonder if Jubilee Line style doors should be considered for the GWML East of Reading.

It would limit station calls to a specific design of unit and need skilled or automated driving to call at exactly the right place though. On the balance of probability - worth doing.

ATO + weather = no platform edge doors. That's why they're not installed north of the tunnel portal on the Jubilee Line Extension, nor at the open-air stations on Crossrail (even new-buld ones like Custom House).

would it make much difference,? Determined people would just choose to either walk down the line or climb the fence at another point

There's a lot of research that shows most railway suicides are sudden decisions, not determined. Any sort of barrier puts x% of people off and reduces the rate.

 

[Carlisle]

There's a lot of research that shows most railway suicides are sudden decisions, not determined. Any sort of barrier puts x% of people off and reduces the rate.

Ok then, cheers for the info, if that's the case, clearly expenditure on higher fencing and possibly platform edge doors etc will be justified

 

[Welly]

Ah, shoot! One of the named days that I don't bother with at all!

Plenty of us on this kind of forum will agree with you!

 

[Antman]

There's a lot of research that shows most railway suicides are sudden decisions, not determined. Any sort of barrier puts x% of people off and reduces the rate.

Forgive me for asking but how can anybody possibly know that most railway suicides are sudden decisions? Maybe the person had been contemplating suicide for some time but nobody else was aware?
--- old post above --- --- new post below ---

They are right. Things must be done.

Is there someone in your life you haven't heard form in a while ? Give em a tinkle.
See someone clearly down in the dumps ? what about a friendly hello.
Work colleague not their usual self ?

The government are stamping down on pay day lenders. Mental health issues are getting more press than ever before. The railway have internal campaigns and organisations like the Samaritans are working closely with NR. Suicide is a societal issue and we can all lend a helping hand.


Pick up the phone : 116 123 (free to call)
Email : [email protected]

All very laudable but of the three people I have known to some degree who have taken their own life nobody saw it coming, rather like Gary Speed.

 

[ComUtoR]

All very laudable but of the three people I have known to some degree who have taken their own life nobody saw it coming, rather like Gary Speed.

We can do something, or we can do nothing.

With the nobody saw it coming comment; I fully understand. It has been noted that "just before" there is a period where people will act totally "normal"

People need an emotional support system through their whole lives and not just when seen to need it. It is often to late by that point. Not forgetting the financial side and the burden of debt.

It is a very complicated issue.

 

[SPADTrap]

I've heard that this can be a bad time of the year, Christmas is over, but the bills are now coming in.

I hear that a lot and I cringe. It sounds very over simplified and as if it's said just because it's said, if that makes sense. Sadly it's a bit deeper that that...

 

[najaB]

Forgive me for asking but how can anybody possibly know that most railway suicides are sudden decisions? Maybe the person had been contemplating suicide for some time but nobody else was aware?

I think they mean that interviews with people who have survived attempts have a consistent theme: they didn't leave home intending to jump under a train. Yes they had been having suicidal thoughts for a while, but the actual decision to carry through with it was a sudden decision.
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Sadly it's a bit deeper that that...

The origins of suicidal ideation are a lot deeper, but the trigger of the actual event can be and often is something 'trivial' like a credit card bill landing on the doormat.

 

[jopsuk]

there's no statistical basis for idea that there's a post-christmas spike in suicides. I've dug out the figures before, but I believe summer is worse...

 

[al78]

It's a complex subject. Someone else that I know well suffers badly from depression in the winter months. She was telling me that the brighter days that we are now getting have made a big difference to her personally and she now feels able to get on with life.

I was wondering if the weather might have something to do with it. Sionce November the weather, at least in the south east of the UK, has been utter rubbish, persistently dull, some rain almost every day and virtually no clear settled spells with sunshine. I have been feeling down from time to time and I don't suffer depression, I'm just glad we'll soon be out of this awful winter. It is of course much worse for those who have had their homes wrecked by flooding.

 

[DerekC]

Although Jubilee line style doors would have to be extraordinarily robust to deal with air pressures from 125mph trains passing through, less sophisticated barriers might work if made from wire mesh on steel frames. There is a a type of welded mesh, often coated in green, that seems to be a favourite where security is needed but palisade fencing is deemed to be too ugly.

Another problem for platform screen doors is that they are tailored for a specific design of rolling stock. So if the ones east of Reading were made to match Crossrail trains with 3 doors per car, nothing else could ever stop at those platforms. And as somebody else said, they require either ATO or an accurate manual stop which adds to platform reoccupation time.

 

[455driver]

Is it getting worse, or was this just a very bad week?

Bad week as normal.

It is love thy partner day (if you have one).
The credit card bill for Christmas is due for paying.
The days are still short so SAD sufferers have it bad especially combined with the above.

It s just one of the times a year when these thing happen more often.

 

[route:oxford]

Probably impossible unless any non-stopping trains pass the platform very slowly, due to the aerodynamic forces on the doors at higher speeds. Even if only fitted on the Relief lines, restricting the freight speed would create capacity problems.

Although, if it was a serious engineering problem, surely sliding doors on trains such as a 150 would be damaged when passing an HST in a tunnel? Rather than the occasional thump noise.

Sections of spaced, but overlapping glass panels that would permit airflow would help

 

[TDK]

We will see by the annual figures if their is an increase in suicides on the railway however it is quite constant. Oh by the way it is nothing to do with politics and if anyone (one has) decides to blame politics they really need to look further into the statistics.

 

[CheesyChips]

It would be interesting to know if platform doors actually prevent a suicide from occuring or just prevent it happening at that location at that time. Obviously it could never be researched.

 

[jopsuk]

Another problem for platform screen doors is that they are tailored for a specific design of rolling stock. So if the ones east of Reading were made to match Crossrail trains with 3 doors per car, nothing else could ever stop at those platforms. And as somebody else said, they require either ATO or an accurate manual stop which adds to platform reoccupation time.

there's other ways - and different versions