Currently stuck on a Northern train between Billingham and Seaton Carew stationary due to person on the line and police in attendance...nearly an hour now, why on earth can't trains proceed at walking pace in such circumstances because in pitch darkness the police aren't going to get anybody!
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Person on the line delay.
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AlastairFraser
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It wouldn't be wise to speculate, but perhaps there is a delicate situation with a person which the police have welfare concerns for.
And surely in pitch darkness how is the driver supposed to spot a person on or near the track?
whoosh
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I don't know the specific circumstances, but sometimes "delicate situations" can involve people on bridges over the railway threatening to jump, and so delays occur whilst a 'trained negotiator' is found.
Also.... having had a person have a fit on my train, but who it turned out had been drinking substantial amounts - it took a whole hour for four ambulance personnel and about eight police from both BTP and the civil police to get him off.
As mentioned, these things of 'delicate situations' don't go very quickly I'm afraid.
A person on the line could be a myriad of things. We had it recently where trains we given permission at extreme caution and we're then pelted with ballast. Which then forced them to stop anyway.
Person could also have crawled under a stationary train.
Too many to list reallu
pokemonsuper9
Established Member
Would the 156's lights not be suitable?
(image of a Class 156's front/side with lights on the front lit)
dk1
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That’s not how it works and the situation is probably not as clear cut as you make out.
Dieseldriver
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‘Trespass on the railway’ can cover a myriad of different scenarios and when the incident drags on, it would usually suggest something delicate and unpleasant is taking place.
AlastairFraser
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Precisely my point, but I wasn't sure if going into details would breach forum guidelines, tbh.
No it could not of happened a long time ago, due to the delicate nature of the reported person on the line.
If it could have moved at caution earlier it would have!
Alanko
Member
All this nonsense because you got home a wee bit late?
dk1
Veteran Member
You are just coming across as somebody in a grump because you are delayed.
Yes I do know more. You know what you need to know which is there was reports of a trespasser/person on the line.
Once it was deemed safe to move at caution, your train did.
I can tell that you have never been involved in a railway fatality or even near miss before. You’re coming across very callously here whether you intend to or not.
Someone is evidently in a worse place than you tonight which has caused you to be 90 minutes late. Better that 90 minute delay to you than the individual having to be packed off in a body bag whilst making you far later than 90 minutes late and of course the trauma counselling for those involved.
I’ll be interested to read the log tomorrow and suspect everything was done correctly.
Please think before posting insensitive posts like this.
Alanko
Member
If I was delayed visiting Hartlepool by 90 minutes I would consider it a blessing of sorts! 
This is a totally and utterly stupid post.
A person was reported sitting in the 4ft on a level crossing. A driver (I believe of your train) managed to convince the person to come to safety on their train where they could be met by police at an appropriate location. A top job by all concerned which has probably saved a life this evening.
For obvious reasons, given your train collected the person from the track, you couldn't have carried on regardless.
But hey you got delayed 90 mins so sod everyone else.
Alanko
Member
You almost sound disappointed.
It is not a stupid post whatsoever. It was a perfectly valid question given that on the majority of reported trespass incidents the default option is not to stop trains but to caution trains. Obviously you have explained the reason why in this specific case it was not an appropriate option, but the OP did not know that when making their post.
Dieseldriver
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Half agree but I would argue that the OP completely let themself down with their posts after explanations by other posters.
Not in my experience.
If there is a 'reported trespasser' - We tend to get cautioned for line checks, typically first person through
If there is a 'confirmed trespasser' - Juice off, All stop
If the 'Big Red' gets pressed - All Stop
'Suicidal' or 'concern for welfare' - All stop
If someone will be on the line checking for a person - Juice off, All stop
Most of the time, it's juice off and all stop.
dk1
Veteran Member
Time this pointless thread was locked in my opinion.
The first time I encountered a ‘person on the line’ was on a relatively remote branch line, with a gentleman who its fair to say was “in drink” sufficient to have it sloshing around the back of his front teeth, with his neck placed on the cess rail. Shouting at the train crew to ‘finish me off’.
In these circumstances I’m sure you‘ll agree it was judicious to not proceed further.
I don‘t know the circumstances in your case, but a train driver needs to be sure of what she or he is facing before proceeding.
Dr Hoo
Established Member
A blast from the past: In my first ever job as an 'outdoor' Traffic Manager (think 'MOM" in modern speak) I had my first trespass incident to deal with. It involved three men spotted walking through a cutting on a diesel line in broad daylight. I decided to put an 'extreme caution' on and then met up with two local (not BT) police and we went to try and intercept them. We had just got to the top of a very deep cutting side when we spotted the three, just as a DMU came along at extreme caution. We shouted down to the men to stand clear, in the cess, which they did. Just as the DMU drew level with the trio one of them planked forward - dead drunk. The two coppers and I were convinced he was a goner. It happened too late for the driver to have seen anything.
The train crawled by, finally revealing the unconscious 'planker' who had his head nestled up against the cess rail. The wheels had gone through his hair!
It turned out that he was getting married the following day and had been on some sort of lunchtime 'stag do'. We got him off the line with his mates, suggested that he visited the barber before his nuptials and sent them off in a taxi. Didn't have the heart to arrest or try and prosecute them.
That was 45 years ago but it taught me a lesson that I never forgot.
The train crawled by, finally revealing the unconscious 'planker' who had his head nestled up against the cess rail. The wheels had gone through his hair!
It turned out that he was getting married the following day and had been on some sort of lunchtime 'stag do'. We got him off the line with his mates, suggested that he visited the barber before his nuptials and sent them off in a taxi. Didn't have the heart to arrest or try and prosecute them.
That was 45 years ago but it taught me a lesson that I never forgot.
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