China News Service, Jilin, May 8 (Shi Hongyu) From experience, the width of the railway crossing is related to the prosperity of the location. Most of the 58-year-old Gao Zhixue's crossings are only 3.5 meters wide, which means that they are located in remote villages or deep mountains. The crossing of the third brother Gao Zhimin's "preservation" is 8.8 meters wide, which indicates that he is in the urban area, and heavy trucks and private cars are endless throughout the night.
The four brothers and sisters of Gao Zhixue are all associated with the work of caring for railway crossings. They are employees of the Jilin Engineering Section of China Railway Shenyang Bureau Group Co., Ltd., and they are present in many crossings under their jurisdiction. According to Gao Zhixue, the four brothers and sisters have completely different personalities. In addition to blood relationship, the long railway line is their common adherence.
Gao Hongfeng at the intersection photo by Hu Hanming
Gao Zhixue got "reliable" evaluation from colleagues for his serious work. He was stationed at the Maojia Crossing in Jindou Village, Jiaohe New Station Town, which is more than 70 kilometers away from the city.
Every working day, he will depart from his home 4 hours in advance by coach to the place of work.
Unlucky, he could only walk on foot when the bus was unable to continue in heavy snow. "Later, I was relatively familiar with the villagers nearby, and they would drive me for a while." Gao Zhixue said that he was very affectionate to more than 10 nearby villages.
The long distance is only part of the difficulty. "The biggest difficulty may be loneliness." When the night is quiet, only the joint control intercom in the 3-square-meter guard room can make a sound, and the mountains and villages are covered by the night.
Gao Zhixue believes, "The unit sent me to show that I can trust me, and my job is not to allow accidents here." This environment he persisted for 10 years until the crossing was cancelled in 2018 and a lower culvert was set up.
Gao Zhiquan's son Gao Lei at work Photo by Hu Hanming
Gao Zhiquan is 55 years old, ranking second in his family. The railway crossing where he is stationed is located near the Jiangmifeng Station in Jilin City. He has been working here for 12 years because of his "ears".
"To take care of crossings, you need to be notified by the intercom on the previous station (level crossing), but there will be no notifications when you depart from the station. I need to be vigilant at all times and listen to the sound of the train." 40 to 50 trains, he will close the crossing 3-5 minutes in advance.
In the eyes of colleagues, Gao Zhiquan has some "occupational diseases", and he always stares at the direction of the station while working, saying "fear of unreliable ears".
Gao Hongfeng is the only girl in the family and is not ranked at home according to custom. Before retiring, she and her third brother Gao Zhimin were stationed at the busiest "223" intersection in Jiaohe, where people and vehicles flowed endlessly.
Gao Zhimin said that the crossing is the only way for large trucks. "When dozens of tons of cars pass through the crossing, the ground underneath trembles." The sisters and brothers have seen many times of crisis in person.
A truck loaded with coal broke its axis at the intersection. Gao Zhimin immediately reported to the superior and channeled the traffic on the spot. With the help of a tractor, it took 40 minutes to clear the intersection.
Gao Hongfeng sometimes needs to be on duty alone late at night. Passers-by who drink too much wine sometimes shake the closed facilities constantly. She has to protect the property of the unit and not allow it to cross the closed junction.
Gao Zhimin will do as much as possible. He makes his sister a "secondary class" and is responsible for controlling the closed barriers. In the winter, in order to smoothly pick up the car and prevent accidents, he will stand at the intersection 1 hour and 40 minutes in advance and direct the "transit" of heavy vehicles and passenger cars.
Due to the same nature of work, the four siblings often sit and chat together. They lamented the rapid changes of the railway, and lamented the passage of time. Today, Gao Zhixue's son Gao Feng works in Shenyang and is responsible for driving the train. He has been working for 8 years; Gao Lei is Gao Zhiquan's son and has been working in the depot for 8 years.
With the advancement of railway construction and management reforms, the abolition and merger of railway crossings have also continued, and the number of crossing guards will be further reduced. "We are all old and will depend on the children in the future." Gao Zhixue said. (Finish)