Another dramatic accident, late Sunday afternoon, at a railway crossing. A TER hit a car near Bourg-en-Bresse in Ain. The two occupants of the vehicle, a man and a woman in his sixties, were killed in the collision and three people inside the train were slightly injured. The TER driver was accompanied by a controller. SNCF considers that, for the moment, nothing seems to indicate that the crossing did not work properly, even though the accidents are repeated regularly.
15,400 passages on the territory. There were 96 collisions last year. And 16 people lost their lives. And yet, according to SNCF, accidents at level crossings have been reduced by half in 10 years. In most cases, these accidents are due to a road and non-rail cause. This may be the result of carelessness or breakdowns in the middle of the tracks. Whatever the reason, grade crossing accidents are one of the two leading causes of death on the rail network. SNCF is trying to invest to improve the safety of its 15,400 passages.
In detail, 17 crossings were removed in 2018, including four registered in the national security plan. These passages are considered very dangerous. On November 1 of last year, they still had 155 to secure. New technologies are being used more and more. Radars are more and more often installed. The SNCF also conducts many awareness campaigns for drivers: 42,000 people were sensitized last year.