*NOTE THE POSSIBLE JAIL SENTENCE THAT CAN BE HANDED DOWN FOR THIS ACT!* Thrown bike hits train BBC News - Thursday, 10 April, 2003, 11:52 GMT 12:52 UK Police have warned youths not to go onto railway tracks Four 13-year-old boys have been arrested on Teesside after a passenger train hit a bike which was thrown into its path, say police. Officers from British Transport Police (BTP) were called to a stretch of track in Stockton on Wednesday night, where they also found a concrete slab, tree stump, metal bars and gas canisters on rails. A BTP spokesman said no-one on the train was injured during the incident. The spokesman said patrols of the area are to be stepped up in the run up to Easter school holidays. The arrests follow a move by the BTP to recruit train staff as special constables. It is hoped the creation of more than 20 on-train specials will reduce anti-social behaviour and drug-related offences. In the latest incident police say they moved items from the track before other trains approached. No injuries The BTP spokesman added: "We were called to Stockton by concerned members of the public, who reported youths placing articles on the track. "We arrested four local males, all aged 13. "Unfortunately a moving passenger train struck a bike which was thrown from a bridge, luckily there were no injuries and no serious damage to the train. "We have a specific operation starting, which coincides with the school Easter holidays. "This involves going into local schools and telling youngsters of the dangers of persons going onto rail lines. "Placing articles on railway lines or throwing objects at trains are serious offences, which carry sentences which can lead to life imprisonment."
Here in the States, I often wonder if any similar incidents could be prevented, with punishment assigned more swiftly. And stiffer penalties. Boxcab E50
Life in prison sounds good just to start with! It should apply to a lot of other crimes too................
You have to catch them before they can be punished. JT - In your fair city in the Bronx I have seen old tires wedged into the 3rd rail so that it would break off the shoes. If they were lucky on a 2 car train it might get all of them and then it was stranded. I am not sure if they still have them but Amtrak used to put steel bars in front of the windshield to stop the larger objects from going through the windshield. MBTA also had these bars.
thick shatter-proof windows that have a fine wire meshed into 1 inch by 1 inch "holes" that is in the glass. I have seen this before.
Chances here in the states the parents will sue the railroads and the railroads will get the blame for being on that spot at that time. [ 12. April 2003, 06:13: Message edited by: Telegrapher ]
I agree with Dick that the parents would probably sue the railroads. Railroad safety should be taught to all children whether they live in an urban setting or a country village. It should be taught even if there isn't a railroad within a hundred miles of them anyway. We've talked about these things in Trainboard before. Maybe some of the homeland security money here in the US should be funneled into this, teaching kids to be on the lookout for evildoers, and how not to become one!
That is why we have such organizations as Operation Lifesaver. I don't know if there is a similar organization in the UK, or elsewhere. I also consider it very important to include talking about safety on all my regular tours at the Danbury Railway Museum. It does not matter what age group may be on a particular tour. I have something along that line for everyone.
Whilst arriving back onto site yeasterday afternoon, we were handed a flyer pointing out the importance of ensuring the accesses to the CTRL are secured to avoid acts of vandalism and an eye kept open for trespassers during the Easter period. This was on the back of a NetworkRail notice to the same effect. So saying this, I have already removed car parts that have been thrown onto the CTRL tracks - and this is before any 300km/h trains have run! Methinks it will be an ongoing problem. Just a thought regarding punishment - rather than doling out stiff sentences for juvenile offenders give them something to do to "atone their indescetions" - like cleaning up along the line. It can certainly use it here in the UK. If it is enforced, the work may give them time to reflect about keeping themselves otherwise occuppied since the vandalism generally comes around through boredom...
