THE unmanned railway level crossings have been a serious problem over the years. They act as death traps for the impatient and the indiscreet the whole year through but in the winter months the danger is heightened because of poor visibility caused by dense fog in various parts of the country. Only last Wednesday, three people were reported killed at a railway level crossing near Mian Channu. Dense fog was again blamed, which doesn’t really absolve those who must act to improve the situation at unmanned crossings. This is no small task, though. There are a total of 4,072 railway crossings in the country, according to the Ministry of Railways figures given on Nov 30. Of them 2,731 are unmanned crossings. The ‘main line’ between Peshawar and Karachi itself has 360 unmanned crossings, while the rest are located on branch lines that may connect any two smaller stations.

A majority of accidents at level crossings take place on the branch lines and since the railways happen to be faced with so many issues that need urgent redress, it is easy for people to blame this negligence, too, on the department. The fact, however, is that the provincial governments in their respective areas have to work closely with the railways to ensure safety at these crossings, which can best be done by converting these unmanned points into efficiently manned ones. Amid all the pledges for improving the working of the railways in the country, the ministry had last year written to the provincial governments, asking them to fulfil their obligations under the law. The letter noted that “under Section 12 of the Railways Act 1890, the responsibility for financing for manning the unmanned level crossings lies with the concerned path-/road-owning authority”. There have since been reports that the Punjab government has allocated a sum for upgrading unmanned level crossings, whereas calls for other provinces to commit resources to this urgent requirement have time and again been made. Everyone needs to realise the need for some fast-track work here. There are accidents to be avoided.

Published in Dawn, December 29th, 2014