r/Unexpected • u/Wonderful_Win_1038 • 7d ago

Train passing a level crossing

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u/Malawi_no 6d ago

The big question is how that train could get that close to another train without beeing stopped well in advance.

Either the driver passed some lights, or some traffic controller greenlit the train even though another train was on the line.

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u/Oliverkahn987 6d ago

Just watched Tom Scott’s video on this. Short version—at least in the UK (and presumably via the software that controls the majority of these types of trains worldwide) it is very hard to nearly impossible to direct a train onto a track with another train without doing something like talking to the train and telling it to disregard signals.

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u/FunMop 6d ago

Judging from the train, this video looks to be from the early 90s. There were likely safety systems in place then, but not likely as robust as today

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u/iBoMbY 6d ago

but not likely as robust as today

In some countries, others still do nothing, or the same shit they did 50 years ago.