The number of level crossing accidents in the last year was the lowest ever in the entire monitoring history of over 70 years, said the Finnish Transport and Communications Agency Traficom in a recent press releasae.
In 2022, there were 17 significant accidents on Finnish railways, in which four people died and seven were seriously injured.
The number of significant accidents was clearly lower than in 2021, but when compared to the last 10 years, on a similar level to the previous years.
Seven accidents were resulting in personal injuries caused by rolling stock in motion. Three people were killed and four injured in these accidents. One of the fatalities was a track maintenance worker. Four of the persons concerned were trespassing on railway premises when they were run over.
Compared to 2021, the largest decrease in the number of railway accidents concerned level crossing accidents.
The number of significant level crossing accidents dropped from 13 to 5 in 2022. There were 15 level crossing accidents in 2022 in total, which is the lowest figure in the entire monitoring history of over 70 years.
Trespassing on railway premises and unauthorised crossing of railway tracks are a major safety issue on Finnish railways.
These train-pedestrian collisions cause approximately 50 to 60 fatalities every year. Most of them are deliberate.
No clear trend can be observed in the number of these collisions In 2021, the rate of train-pedestrian collisions was lower than average at 38. In 2022, the number of collisions returned to the previous level at 59 collisions.
- Accident
- Level crossing
Source: www.dailyfinland.fi
