BERGEN (Dagbladet): – It’s probably not bad will, but a healthy recall could be in order. If you have “always” walked in the lane, or “only” crossed on rare occasions, after taking a good look, sooner or later something could go wrong. The train comes at more than 100 km/h, it arrives almost silently, it cannot turn around and takes 1 kilometer or more to stop, explains Pål Buset, project manager at Bane NOR, in a press release. press.

Bane NOR issues a clear warning ahead of the Easter holiday. Especially on the feast days around Easter, people put on their skis and take deadly shortcuts to get from one side of the train tracks to the other, writes Bane NOR.

– Ski slopes and railway tracks do not go together. This is a good rule to remember. If you are going to cross, it is only safe and legal where there is a level crossing, or a road above or below the railway line, explains the project manager.

The bus also reminds us that the cab is the driver’s workplace. For them, the real horror is to see people lined up in front of them, and not being able to turn away, or stop in time.

– They sit with their hearts in their throats and just have to slow down, honk their horns and hope the adults and kids manage to throw themselves far enough off the track in time, says Buset.

– Toboggan run to the track

Håkon Eggen is a train driver on Bane NOR’s Beilhack work machine, which cleans the Bergen railway daily from snow and ice in winter.

He often sees tracks that show people have skied over the railway line, and over and beside the railway line, especially between Geilo and Finse.

– I get scared when I almost run over someone. It is unpleasant to come by car when you know that there can be people in and near the track. We honk a bit more on those stretches where we often see ski trails in or over the train tracks. I’m ready to crush someone someday, I think about it often, Eggen says in the press release.

He tells Dagbladet:

– I drove children and adults. One thing is that the children play, they don’t understand any better, but when the parents watch… I saw people tobogganing down the track at Easter. It’s very strange.

hard to see

He recalls that the train he is driving is not notified in the timetable and that they can pass at any time of the day. It can also be difficult for them to see people in bad weather, but they can’t turn away anyway.

– In some places above the mountain, trains arrive at 160 km/h. If you come at that speed, you won’t see people until you hit them, he warns.

Bane NOR receives reports of a few dozen skiers on or across the piste over the course of a season. But traces of skiing and trampling on the line or on the railway indicate that the problem is much more widespread:

– For train drivers, snow removal crews and people who work maintaining the railroad, such sights are commonplace, says Buset.

– Everyone should think about it

Dangerous events

Bane NOR shares an excerpt from reported incidents:

• “A skier with a sled crosses the track, between Ustaoset and Haugastøl. The skier barely manages to take cover, but the sledge is taken by the train. Fortunately, the sled only contains provisions.” (Excerpt from Bane NOR Internal Synergy Reports)
• “Train 601 almost hit a couple who were skiing on the track, with their backs to the train. (…) The train driver signaled “the train is coming” several times before the skiers became aware of the train and got out of the train. the track. The train was then so close to the skiers that the train driver was sure he was going to run over them. When the train had stopped, the skiers had disappeared. The relationship had a strong effect on the train driver .” (Excerpt from the synergy report of the section between Ål and Haugastøl)
• “The driver of train 472 reports that a family on skis with a sled and small children crossed the track just ahead of the train between Lønsdal and Bolna. The train came out of a curve at 100 km/h, and the distance until the family was very small.” (Excerpt from the synergy report of a section of the Nordlandsbanen)
• “After the works train passed the Vatnestrøm stop, the driver spotted three skiers on the track. The emergency brake was applied and the driver ‘hooked’ on the whistle. The skiers threw themselves down the slope. One pulled a sled behind him. This was smashed by the plow on the motor vehicle. Fortunately, the skiers emerged unscathed from the incident.”
• “Reports from locomotive drivers: There are constant pedestrians, skiers and snowmobiles on the track between Reinunga and Myrdal.”
• “Skiers on the track at km 351.3 on the Bergen Railway when train 602 came into service. The driver applied the emergency brake and managed to stop a good distance away. A few people struggled to get off the trail due to the high plow edges.Runs well.