Rail campaigners in East Devon are supporting efforts by the rail industry to boost safety on and around the railway.

Groups from Honiton, Axminster, Feniton and Whimple are coming together to raise awareness of safety on railway crossings.

Monday June 24 to Sunday 30 is Rail Safety Week, an industry-wide initiative that aims to bring rail safety to the forefront of people’s minds.

Local groups, including The Friends of Honiton Station, and station adoption groups in Feniton and Whimple, have pledged their support for all those involved in this year’s event.

The week aims to shine a spotlight on the importance of safety across the UK rail industry, whether for rail staff, passengers or the wider public, in order to prevent fatalities and serious injuries on and around the railway.

A particular focus this year is the vital need for everyone to use level crossings safely. Crossings at Axminster, Feniton and Pinhoe have all seen incidents over the last year, in which trains have had to make sudden unplanned stops due to the crossing barriers not being able to close properly, because people were trying to cross the line as the barriers came down.

In particular, there have also been several instances this year at the Feniton Station crossing of pedestrians with their children continuing to cross the line as the barriers were coming down. With five accidental fatalities in 2022/23 at UK level crossings, passengers are being urged to remember how dangerous level crossings can be if not used properly.

Network Rail has closed over 1,300 crossings since 2009. However, this is not a possible solution in many areas, including East Devon. Therefore, they have invested over £200 million over the last 15 years in improving safety at thousands of crossings, including building bridges, identifying safer rights of way, installing new barriers and warning systems, new signage and educating the people that use them how to be safe around level crossings.

Unfortunately, there continue to be large numbers of near-misses every year between trains and level crossing users, a fact being highlighted by this year’s Rail Safety Week.

The event also highlights simple things that all of us who use the railway can do to stay safe. Everyone should stay behind the yellow line on the station platform until the train has stopped. And everyone should take care when boarding or alighting from the train. Remember the old mantra: “Mind the Gap.”

They also urge the public to never go onto the tracks, except to cross the line at a designated crossing. There have been several recent incidents locally of trespass on the tracks. Whether entering the tracks to cause damage, a nuisance or to evade the police, such behaviour can be extremely dangerous and have tragic consequences.

In addition, the Samaritans has been working with the rail industry to reduce the number of people who have gone onto the railway intending to take their own life.

Chairman of The Friends of Honiton Station, Martin Long, said: “Rail Safety Week is a great opportunity to draw everyone’s attention to the importance of keeping safe on and around the railway. As passengers, and as drivers, cyclists and pedestrians using level crossings, we all have a responsibility to take rail safety seriously.”