LEVEL CROSSING SAFETYSUPPLEMENT 7 Liv Bjørnå


Safety Director, Jernbaneverket


Level crossings still biggest safety challenge in Norway


Level crossings represent the greatest risk to life associated with railway operations in Norway. For the past 15 years, the Norwegian National Rail Administration (Jernbaneverket) has pursued an action plan to improve safety by closing or upgrading level crossings. In recent years, Jernbaneverket has focused on closing the highest-risk crossings. Accident numbers have declined sharply over this period, but level crossings remain the biggest safety challenge on Norwegian railways.


Level crossing accidents currently cause an average of one fatality annually. Although the number of fatalities is low, traffic at level crossings still has major accident potential. The number of injuries is also relatively low because level crossing accidents are usually fatal. Since 2006, no rail passengers have been


killed, and serious accidents involving railway personnel have been reduced to a minimum. The most recent fatal accident involving staff occurred in 2005 during shunting operations at a timber terminal. As far as level crossings are concerned, 2005-2008 was a good period with no fatalities, while there was one fatality in 2009, two in 2010, and one in 2011 to date. By road safety standards these numbers are low, but each of these accidents is nevertheless a tragedy for those involved.


Tragic accidents Past tragic accidents have seen as many as five young people killed when a train collided with their car at a level crossing. Accidents of this kind attract a great deal of media and political attention and are one reason why Jernbaneverket has received funding for level crossing safety improvements.


Approximately 10% of Norwegian level crossings are equipped with barriers, traffic lights and audible warning systems. This crossing at Tomsbakken near Tønsberg on the Vestfold line will be closed in December 2011 following the opening of a new double-track section.


Private crossings All the level crossing accidents involving human fatalities in the past three years occurred at


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European Railway Review Volume 17, Issue 4, 2011


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