Question about level crossing barrier timings

[Mikw]

Ah, good topic and thanks for the enlightening replies.
I live near Paignton where the crossing is adjacent to the station and cuts the main shopping street in half.
Obviously safety is the highest priority, but with 5/6 trains per hour arriving or leaving this means the crossing is closed 25% or so of the time.
There is an arduous footbridge but if the council wanted a more user friendly underpass would the cost fall to them please.?

Lincoln is similar, but sees even more train traffic. There's a rather high footbridge crossing if you can't wait with lifts. I would say that the level crossing at certain times spends more times closed than open.

 

[Flying Claret]

That doesn't ring true. Huncoat is an MCB-OD level crossing, so the protecting signal (PN401) is interlocked and won't clear unless the barriers are down and the crossing is proved clear (the control table confirms this). The *preceding signal (PN403) is an automatic signal.

Fair enough, that was just my guess. I'm in no way an expert. I just know that the signal at the crossing can be on green whilst the barriers are raised.

 

[Bikeman78]

Is that really allowed? Surely if the crossing is open then the signal protecting it must be red??
(not an expert)

Completely routine in Europe. The Dutch level crossings used to give 25 seconds warning at line speed. Probably still the case now. On straight lines you can see the train long before the crossing bells start.

Of course there is a risk that the crossing will in fact not be clear for some reason, but up to now the balance of risk/road closed time permits it. Should that change, all level crossings will need full barrier crossing closed times. Be careful what you wish for!

The crossing that prompted this discussion was an AHB until recently.

 

[IceBlue]

The Derby end of the North Staffordshire line provides some good examples of the different times needed for different crossings.

At Tutbury and Hatton, generally the barriers come down around 3 minutes before arrival. The signal box needs to lower the barriers, confirm clear then clear signals in time before the train reaches its distant signal (from either Sudbury or Egginton Jct)

A short distance down the line at Marston, there is probably no more than a minute of downtime as the crossing is a automatic half barrier

However, the next crossing is Hilton’s manual crossing which is closed by a crossing keeper, but with protecting signals under Egginton Junction. As the distant (just after Marston crossing) needs to be clear by the time the train arrives, I’d imagine the crossing close process has to be started once Tutbury gives train in section, which can be given once a train is standing at Tutbury and Hatton. The above stops road traffic for a good 5 minutes.

 

[Goldfish62]

A particular example quite local to me is the less than 2 mile stretch between North Sheen and Barnes which has 4 crossings and up to 20 train movements per hour, with a mix of stoppers and non-stop services. Inevitably the signallers have to give some windows for road traffic so this does often result in trains being cautioned awaiting the barriers to be lowered.

 

[Bikeman78]

A particular example quite local to me is the less than 2 mile stretch between North Sheen and Barnes which has 4 crossings and up to 20 train movements per hour, with a mix of stoppers and non-stop services. Inevitably the signallers have to give some windows for road traffic so this does often result in trains being cautioned awaiting the barriers to be lowered.

Similar between Tottenham Hale and Cheshunt. 10 trains per hour in each direction with level crossings at Brimsdown and Enfield Lock, about a mile apart. Minor delays waiting for the signals to clear are common, as are long queues on the roads.

 

[43055]

The Derby end of the North Staffordshire line provides some good examples of the different times needed for different crossings.

At Tutbury and Hatton, generally the barriers come down around 3 minutes before arrival. The signal box needs to lower the barriers, confirm clear then clear signals in time before the train reaches its distant signal (from either Sudbury or Egginton Jct)

A short distance down the line at Marston, there is probably no more than a minute of downtime as the crossing is a automatic half barrier

However, the next crossing is Hilton’s manual crossing which is closed by a crossing keeper, but with protecting signals under Egginton Junction. As the distant (just after Marston crossing) needs to be clear by the time the train arrives, I’d imagine the crossing close process has to be started once Tutbury gives train in section, which can be given once a train is standing at Tutbury and Hatton. The above stops road traffic for a good 5 minutes.

At Tutbury as well sometimes in the morning both trains can come at around the same time meaning they are shut for 5 mins or so.

Hilton is an interesting one as I believe it is the only one in the country to have manual gates and wig wag's.