Re: Princes Highway Crossing Signal Replacement – December 2020
  Matthew Geier


On 10/1/21 9:37 pm, espee8800 wrote:
> I think they need some serious police attention to the crossing and

> certainly a red light camera.

>

Sydney has so few level crossings that I think most motorists have no
idea what flashing red lights mean as they so rarely encounter them.

On more than one occasion I've been the driver of a tram at that
crossing and observed motorists slow down for the flashing lights, see
the road is clear, so just speed up and cross anyway. I suspect they
think they are faulty traffic lights (which flash if the controller
crashes and the intersection come under 'stop and give way' rules). They
see flashing light and a clear road, so they just drive right on
through, ignoring the big cross sign saying 'railway crossing'. And the
non traffic light arrangement of the lights. And the bells.

There are a set of distants too - that flash yellow behind a sign saying
'railway crossing prepare to stop'.

As a result we do no 'force out right of way' onto the crossing, but
generally  stop and wait till we have a 'wall' of stopped vehicles,
although the traffic doesn't always oblige - the scariest crossing are
those you make with out a 'wall' of stopped cars.

I've witnessed a number of minor accidents at the crossing. Some one
stops for the flashing red lights, the person behind doesn't. Including
a taxi that almost rear ended a police car, the only reason they didn't
as they were in outside lane and ABS allowed them to steer into the
breakdown lane. The taxi stopped beside the police car....

The big concrete barriers are not part of the level crossing, the RTA
put them in years ago due to the number of loss of control accidents on
the curve just past the crossing. The barriers prevent those accidents
becoming head ons.