Neighbour in crossing plea

6:45am Saturday 12th April 2008

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Residents of an Oxfordshire village where an elderly woman was killed by a train on an unmanned railway crossing had rejected offers of a underpass, it emerged last night.

The news comes as Network Rail prepares to launch an investigation on Monday into the death of Tackley resident Margaret Evans, 81.

Mrs Evans was killed at Tackley level crossing after being hit by a train travelling from Dundee to Bournemouth two weeks ago.

There is no suggestion the train driver was to blame for the incident.

West Oxfordshire District Council documents show residents were consulted about the possibility of an underpass in 2002, but decided it would be out of character with the village.

Network Rail got planning permission to build a subway in 2003, but were unable to buy farmland bordering the level crossing and the plans were shelved.

However, Tackley Parish Council asked Network Rail to erect warning lights five years ago and this week there were renewed calls from a neighbour of Mrs Evans, who was nearly run down by a train on the crossing four years ago.

Frances Maxwelll, 63, of St John's Road, said she could not hear or see a the train coming and was only saved by Father Robin Gibbons who pulled her back off the line.

Mrs Maxwell, who has lived in the village 42 years, said: "I'm very much in favour of traffic lights on the crossing. There's nothing there at the moment to warn you that a train is coming. If it wasn't for Fr Gibbons it could be have been me under a train."

Robert Clow, 70, former chairman of the parish council, said: "I'm very annoyed Network Rail didn't listen to us about lights.

"It would have made the crossing a lot safer because people would be told when a train was coming.

"I couldn't say whether the lights would have saved Margaret's life, but trains have sped up dramatically in recent years, so the crossing has become more dangerous."

Network Rail said it would take about a month to complete its investigation and any improvements made would be unlikely to include warning lights.

Spokesman Chris Mitchellcorr said: "If a train has just passed through the level crossing and stops at the station, people may mistakenly believe it is safe to cross despite the red light still showing - and may not realise the light is still at red because another train is coming from the opposite direction."