Footage shows high-speed near misses at level crossings

Network Rail has released dramatic footage of high-speed near-misses as motorists and pedestrians continue to dice with death at rail level crossings.

The footage shows a man having his shoe knocked off when narrowly avoiding a train and, a train missing a car by inches, and another car hit by a barrier while attempting to swerve between gates.

Incidents are at a four-year high, according to Network Rail, with more than 3,400 cases of level-crossing misuse last year, disrupting thousands of trains and costing £1.8m.

95 per cent of such accidents are caused by misuse or drive error, says the network operator.

Trains hit 20 vehicles that tried to drive around barriers last year, while 15 people died in accidents.

A television and radio advertising campaign is airing again this month, having debuted in November 2008.

Network Rail chief executive Iain Coucher said: "Every week we see people who ignore warning signs and lights or drive round barriers at level crossings just to save a few minutes.

"This behaviour has the potential for massive damage, disruption and death. We think that the judiciary penalties received need to reflect the seriousness of these crimes and are calling on the judiciary to consider all these factors when handing down sentences."

Network Rail's footage of the incidents described above follows:

A longer version of the Corsa incident:

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