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Unread 22-12-2016, 11:26   #6
James Howard
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Join Date: Aug 2009
Location: Sligo Line
Posts: 1,115
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I wasn't trying to argue that no rules were broken or that having trains longer than a platform is entirely safe. People falling out of slam doors used to cause the odd fatality when they were in operation. But the risk is extremely low and was mitigated. Using power operated doors on short platforms is a far more risky proposition - at least with a manual door, you have to lean out the window and it is pretty hard to miss the train not being at a platform unless you are trying to get a claim in.

If you want to talk about real safety issues, the most likely way you'll get injured with rail travel currently is the possibility of an assault due to antisocial behaviour on driver only intercity trains. I don't think it is at all likely that I am going to injure myself falling out the door.

It's funny how this issue has received so much attention when there have been a couple of incidents of trains passing red signals on single-line sections - one of which went a few kilometres down the line before being stopped. That's something the scares the bejesus out of me. People losing the rag over trains being too long for the platform is interfering with the real issues being deal with. I wonder the media are being played because to be honest the safety organisations do look a bit ridiculous making a big deal over the Middleton issue.
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