Australian Railroad Crossing Signals

[StuartHunt101]

There's been an accident at the School Road crossing on the Puffing Billy Railway today, first thing foremost is that no one appears to be seriously hurt...
http://www.heraldsun.com.au/news/victor ... cea98debb2

Going by the pictures, there seems to be no damage to the actual crossing signals (you can see the one with the bell in the third picture). The article states that "the minibus did not appear to stop to give way to the train at the level crossing on School Rd".

Now, my main question is that does this accident lead to more crossings on the line being upgraded? We already know that three are meant to be upgraded by the end of the year, but will the Andrews' 'Communists' now considering upgrading more of them? Hopefully not...

I heard all about that. Right now, like you said, it's kinda being indicated that the driver was at fault, but also that it might be a vehicle fault. I think they're doing a history check of the tour bus operator, to see if the company has any bad track record when it comes to vehicle maintenance. I honestly felt a bit sick inside when I first heard it, because I instantly thought they'll blame the crossing as it doesn't have boom gates, so therefore 'all crossings will need to be upgraded with boom gates'. They haven't said anything bad about the crossing yet though (they even said the lights and bell were operating as usual, which is good), so we can hope for the best

I volunteered at Puffing Billy nearly two weeks, so while we're on the topic I might just update on the crossings being upgraded. Edenmont Rd has new bases installed for the new boom gates. All the old signals are still there and operating, but I wouldn't be surprised if they've been removed next time I'm up there

https://www.google.com.au/maps/@-37.929 ... 312!8i6656

Pinnocks Rd has been pretty much completely upgraded. The old signals have been removed and placed in the Emerald junk yard (so don't worry, it's equipment isn't being scrapped but rather preserved, sort of). The boom gate mechanisms have been installed, but the arms haven't yet, which makes it look kinda weird. Unfortunately, the teardrop bell has gone too, but the good news is it was replaced with a Western Cullen Hayes mechanical bell (which looks pretty much brand new). This is the only bell on the crossing. I wonder if they'll install another one?

https://www.google.com.au/maps/@-37.930 ... 312!8i6656

And on the topic of the Emerald junk yard, it has now gained a Wabco bell... eerily soon after Derby Rd in Maryborough was removed, hmm. I have asked one of the station master's if there's any way I could get my hands on any of the bells lingering in the yard, but unfortunately (only for me) all the bells in the yard have been recorded in the books, so they can't be removed. It's also apparently run by an old guy who doesn't want anyone to touch his stuff. I need more authority than that of a conductor!

Old Monbulk Rd hasn't changed at all. No new bases or signals or anything just yet

https://www.google.com.au/maps/@-37.906 ... 312!8i6656

I'm volunteering again this Sunday, so no doubt I'll hear lots about the crash. I'll also be able to see if they've done any more upgrades on any of the crossings

On a different note, both the Station Street and Brunt Road crossings in Officer still retain their hybrid bells (with the latter crossing still having missing a crossbuck!).

EDIT: There appears to be no damage to the other signal going by a Ten News report...

Hooray! We can relax a little bit longer now. The thing I don't really like about Metro is how inconsistent they are in the crossings they pick for upgrades. Eel Race road is practically a pile of rusty old junk now, with most equipment being like 40 years old, and could do with even a little makeover, like a new hybrid bell... but NO, they've gotta upgrade Bell St in Coburg and Victoria St in Brunswick with new bells and boom gate mechanisms that aren't even 20 years old because... reasons

[TrickyMario7654]

There's been an accident at the School Road crossing on the Puffing Billy Railway today, first thing foremost is that no one appears to be seriously hurt...
http://www.heraldsun.com.au/news/victor ... cea98debb2

Going by the pictures, there seems to be no damage to the actual crossing signals (you can see the one with the bell in the third picture). The article states that "the minibus did not appear to stop to give way to the train at the level crossing on School Rd".

Now, my main question is that does this accident lead to more crossings on the line being upgraded? We already know that three are meant to be upgraded by the end of the year, but will the Andrews' 'Communists' now considering upgrading more of them? Hopefully not...

I heard all about that. Right now, like you said, it's kinda being indicated that the driver was at fault, but also that it might be a vehicle fault. I think they're doing a history check of the tour bus operator, to see if the company has any bad track record when it comes to vehicle maintenance. I honestly felt a bit sick inside when I first heard it, because I instantly thought they'll blame the crossing as it doesn't have boom gates, so therefore 'all crossings will need to be upgraded with boom gates'. They haven't said anything bad about the crossing yet though (they even said the lights and bell were operating as usual, which is good), so we can hope for the best

I volunteered at Puffing Billy nearly two weeks, so while we're on the topic I might just update on the crossings being upgraded. Edenmont Rd has new bases installed for the new boom gates. All the old signals are still there and operating, but I wouldn't be surprised if they've been removed next time I'm up there

https://www.google.com.au/maps/@-37.929 ... 312!8i6656

Pinnocks Rd has been pretty much completely upgraded. The old signals have been removed and placed in the Emerald junk yard (so don't worry, it's equipment isn't being scrapped but rather preserved, sort of). The boom gate mechanisms have been installed, but the arms haven't yet, which makes it look kinda weird. Unfortunately, the teardrop bell has gone too, but the good news is it was replaced with a Western Cullen Hayes mechanical bell (which looks pretty much brand new). This is the only bell on the crossing. I wonder if they'll install another one?

https://www.google.com.au/maps/@-37.930 ... 312!8i6656

And on the topic of the Emerald junk yard, it has now gained a Wabco bell... eerily soon after Derby Rd in Maryborough was removed, hmm. I have asked one of the station master's if there's any way I could get my hands on any of the bells lingering in the yard, but unfortunately (only for me) all the bells in the yard have been recorded in the books, so they can't be removed. It's also apparently run by an old guy who doesn't want anyone to touch his stuff. I need more authority than that of a conductor!

Old Monbulk Rd hasn't changed at all. No new bases or signals or anything just yet

https://www.google.com.au/maps/@-37.906 ... 312!8i6656

I'm volunteering again this Sunday, so no doubt I'll hear lots about the crash. I'll also be able to see if they've done any more upgrades on any of the crossings

On a different note, both the Station Street and Brunt Road crossings in Officer still retain their hybrid bells (with the latter crossing still having missing a crossbuck!).

EDIT: There appears to be no damage to the other signal going by a Ten News report...

Hooray! We can relax a little bit longer now. The thing I don't really like about Metro is how inconsistent they are in the crossings they pick for upgrades. Eel Race road is practically a pile of rusty old junk now, with most equipment being like 40 years old, and could do with even a little makeover, like a new hybrid bell... but NO, they've gotta upgrade Bell St in Coburg and Victoria St in Brunswick with new bells and boom gate mechanisms that aren't even 20 years old because... reasons

Thanks for the updates on those three crossings. Thankfully, I've photographed both Pinnocks Road and Edenmont Road back in January. I'm planning to head back up there and photograph the crossings further up the line (towards Belgrave) soon. Hopefully i'll get Old Monbulk Road documented before it's upgraded.

I think another potential cause of the accident was that the crossing is located at the bottom of a steep hill. From the direction they were travelling in (eastbound), it would be hard to make out the flashing lights (let alone the actual signals themselves) from the top of the hill.
https://www.google.com.au/maps/@-37.918 ... 312!8i6656

One possible fix to the sighting issue would be to install AAWS at the crossing (at the top of the hill located on each side of the crossing) so that way drivers would be well aware of the fact that the crossing is active and a train is coming. There's an example of this at Gembrook.
https://www.google.com.au/maps/@-37.946 ... 312!8i6656

On the subject of this crossing, it appears to still have the old cattle grids from the days where farmers would walk their livestock down the road. These were at each rail crossing so that animals would not stray onto the tracks and cause an accident.
https://www.google.com.au/maps/@-37.947 ... 312!8i6656
https://www.google.com.au/maps/@-37.947 ... 312!8i6656

There's another one of these at Belgrave-Gembrook Road in Emerald...
https://www.google.com.au/maps/@-37.932 ... 312!8i6656

...and previously at Kilvington Drive (they appeared to have been removed when I was photographing the crossing earlier this year).
https://www.google.com.au/maps/@-37.934 ... 312!8i6656

Finally, this passive crossing between Lakeside and Cockatoo has a pair of them.
https://www.google.com.au/maps/@-37.929 ... 328!8i1664
https://www.google.com.au/maps/@-37.929 ... 328!8i1664

They're pretty much useless nowdays as pretty much no one walks with their cows, pigs, and chickens down the road. Not to mention, they could be a hazard to any vehicle hat hits them (not that it really happens).

[NathanFromEngland]

There's been an accident at the School Road crossing on the Puffing Billy Railway today, first thing foremost is that no one appears to be seriously hurt...
http://www.heraldsun.com.au/news/victor ... cea98debb2

Going by the pictures, there seems to be no damage to the actual crossing signals (you can see the one with the bell in the third picture). The article states that "the minibus did not appear to stop to give way to the train at the level crossing on School Rd".

Now, my main question is that does this accident lead to more crossings on the line being upgraded? We already know that three are meant to be upgraded by the end of the year, but will the Andrews' 'Communists' now considering upgrading more of them? Hopefully not...

I heard all about that. Right now, like you said, it's kinda being indicated that the driver was at fault, but also that it might be a vehicle fault. I think they're doing a history check of the tour bus operator, to see if the company has any bad track record when it comes to vehicle maintenance. I honestly felt a bit sick inside when I first heard it, because I instantly thought they'll blame the crossing as it doesn't have boom gates, so therefore 'all crossings will need to be upgraded with boom gates'. They haven't said anything bad about the crossing yet though (they even said the lights and bell were operating as usual, which is good), so we can hope for the best

I volunteered at Puffing Billy nearly two weeks, so while we're on the topic I might just update on the crossings being upgraded. Edenmont Rd has new bases installed for the new boom gates. All the old signals are still there and operating, but I wouldn't be surprised if they've been removed next time I'm up there

https://www.google.com.au/maps/@-37.929 ... 312!8i6656

Pinnocks Rd has been pretty much completely upgraded. The old signals have been removed and placed in the Emerald junk yard (so don't worry, it's equipment isn't being scrapped but rather preserved, sort of). The boom gate mechanisms have been installed, but the arms haven't yet, which makes it look kinda weird. Unfortunately, the teardrop bell has gone too, but the good news is it was replaced with a Western Cullen Hayes mechanical bell (which looks pretty much brand new). This is the only bell on the crossing. I wonder if they'll install another one?

https://www.google.com.au/maps/@-37.930 ... 312!8i6656

And on the topic of the Emerald junk yard, it has now gained a Wabco bell... eerily soon after Derby Rd in Maryborough was removed, hmm. I have asked one of the station master's if there's any way I could get my hands on any of the bells lingering in the yard, but unfortunately (only for me) all the bells in the yard have been recorded in the books, so they can't be removed. It's also apparently run by an old guy who doesn't want anyone to touch his stuff. I need more authority than that of a conductor!

Old Monbulk Rd hasn't changed at all. No new bases or signals or anything just yet

https://www.google.com.au/maps/@-37.906 ... 312!8i6656

I'm volunteering again this Sunday, so no doubt I'll hear lots about the crash. I'll also be able to see if they've done any more upgrades on any of the crossings

On a different note, both the Station Street and Brunt Road crossings in Officer still retain their hybrid bells (with the latter crossing still having missing a crossbuck!).

EDIT: There appears to be no damage to the other signal going by a Ten News report...

Hooray! We can relax a little bit longer now. The thing I don't really like about Metro is how inconsistent they are in the crossings they pick for upgrades. Eel Race road is practically a pile of rusty old junk now, with most equipment being like 40 years old, and could do with even a little makeover, like a new hybrid bell... but NO, they've gotta upgrade Bell St in Coburg and Victoria St in Brunswick with new bells and boom gate mechanisms that aren't even 20 years old because... reasons

Thanks for the updates on those three crossings. Thankfully, I've photographed both Pinnocks Road and Edenmont Road back in January. I'm planning to head back up there and photograph the crossings further up the line (towards Belgrave) soon. Hopefully i'll get Old Monbulk Road documented before it's upgraded.

I think another potential cause of the accident was that the crossing is located at the bottom of a steep hill. From the direction they were travelling in (eastbound), it would be hard to make out the flashing lights (let alone the actual signals themselves) from the top of the hill.
https://www.google.com.au/maps/@-37.918 ... 312!8i6656

One possible fix to the sighting issue would be to install AAWS at the crossing (at the top of the hill located on each side of the crossing) so that way drivers would be well aware of the fact that the crossing is active and a train is coming. There's an example of this at Gembrook.
https://www.google.com.au/maps/@-37.946 ... 312!8i6656

On the subject of this crossing, it appears to still have the old cattle grids from the days where farmers would walk their livestock down the road. These were at each rail crossing so that animals would not stray onto the tracks and cause an accident.
https://www.google.com.au/maps/@-37.947 ... 312!8i6656
https://www.google.com.au/maps/@-37.947 ... 312!8i6656

There's another one of these at Belgrave-Gembrook Road in Emerald...
https://www.google.com.au/maps/@-37.932 ... 312!8i6656

...and previously at Kilvington Drive (they appeared to have been removed when I was photographing the crossing earlier this year).
https://www.google.com.au/maps/@-37.934 ... 312!8i6656

Finally, this passive crossing between Lakeside and Cockatoo has a pair of them.
https://www.google.com.au/maps/@-37.929 ... 328!8i1664
https://www.google.com.au/maps/@-37.929 ... 328!8i1664

They're pretty much useless nowdays as pretty much no one walks with their cows, pigs, and chickens down the road. Not to mention, they could be a hazard to any vehicle hat hits them (not that it really happens).

Turns out, the article has been updated. And this is what they have to say.

UPDATE: Puffing Billy has suspended a popular decades-old tradition after the tourist train and a minibus collided yesterday.

Passengers won’t be able to sit out the sides of the carriage after the practice was temporarily stopped in the wake of the crash, which happened about noon at the School Road level crossing at Menzies Creek in Melbourne’s east.

[Username1]

So I found out that I was right about one of the e bells at Station Street Mordialloc dying. (Skip to 1:57) https://youtu.be/eZFSdH5dXyw

You can hear that the one that is supposed to remain on the throughout the activation is dead so the crossing becomes silent when the gates are lowered because the working bell turns off. I’m unsure if the bell has been replaced because every time I go across the crossing I haven’t been stopped by a train and on the train I can’t hear anything but the pedestrian alarms (probably indicating that the bell is still dead).

[McK&H.Aust]

So I found out that I was right about one of the e bells at Station Street Mordialloc dying. (Skip to 1:57) https://youtu.be/eZFSdH5dXyw

You can hear that the one that is supposed to remain on the throughout the activation is dead so the crossing becomes silent when the gates are lowered because the working bell turns off. I’m unsure if the bell has been replaced because every time I go across the crossing I haven’t been stopped by a train and on the train I can’t hear anything but the pedestrian alarms (probably indicating that the bell is still dead).

Certainly sounds like the bell is dead. The only other possible explanation is that both bells have been modified to turn off once the gates have lowered (there are a few crossings in NSW like that) but it's probably just lazy metro not bothering to replace the dead bell, probably too busy replacing perfectly good hybrid bells

Speaking of NSW, found a notice today about upgrading the Fountaindale Rd crossing at Robertson https://extranet.artc.com.au/docman/Doc ... 1748985875
The notice isn't really clear about the exact changes, but I'm hoping they don't replace the mechanical bells. It's interesting that they are replacing the existing Harmon grade crossing predictor (HXP-3) with a Safetran/Siemens model (GCP-4000). This was one of the first crossings in NSW to receive a grade crossing predictor (back in 2001), so maybe the existing one is worn out.

https://www.google.com.au/maps/@-34.590 ... 328!8i1664

[McK&H.Aust]

Another gateless crossing is being upgraded with gates, this time it's Rouchel Rd at Aberdeen NSW.
https://www.google.com.au/maps/@-32.160 ... 312!8i6656

The street name on google is shown as McAdam St, which then becomes Rouchel Rd a bit further along. Notice the different spelling of "Rouchell" on the relay bungalow https://www.google.com.au/maps/@-32.160 ... 312!8i6656

It's interesting that the upgrade is being advertised well in advance (almost a month), usually you are lucky to get 2 weeks notice!
https://extranet.artc.com.au/docman/Doc ... 1567947458


Another minor upgrade is the installation of a pedestrian crossing at Merriwa Rd, Willow Tree.
https://www.google.com.au/maps/@-31.652 ... 312!8i6656
https://extranet.artc.com.au/docman/Doc ... ?560674185

The gateless signals were installed in the 1970's and it's amazing they haven't been replaced yet, although the hybrid bell was replaced by a Safetran Type 3 e-bell a few years ago.

[TrickyMario7654]

Another gateless crossing is being upgraded with gates, this time it's Rouchel Rd at Aberdeen NSW.
https://www.google.com.au/maps/@-32.160 ... 312!8i6656

The street name on google is shown as McAdam St, which then becomes Rouchel Rd a bit further along. Notice the different spelling of "Rouchell" on the relay bungalow https://www.google.com.au/maps/@-32.160 ... 312!8i6656

It's interesting that the upgrade is being advertised well in advance (almost a month), usually you are lucky to get 2 weeks notice!
https://extranet.artc.com.au/docman/Doc ... 1567947458

I suppose you wanna film it before it gets upgraded...

[McK&H.Aust]

Another gateless crossing is being upgraded with gates, this time it's Rouchel Rd at Aberdeen NSW.
https://www.google.com.au/maps/@-32.160 ... 312!8i6656

The street name on google is shown as McAdam St, which then becomes Rouchel Rd a bit further along. Notice the different spelling of "Rouchell" on the relay bungalow https://www.google.com.au/maps/@-32.160 ... 312!8i6656

It's interesting that the upgrade is being advertised well in advance (almost a month), usually you are lucky to get 2 weeks notice!
https://extranet.artc.com.au/docman/Doc ... 1567947458

I suppose you wanna film it before it gets upgraded...

It would be nice to film but don't know if I'll get the chance, the GSV image is quite old so I'm not sure what the crossing looks like now. You can't see the crossing from the main road, and I always forget to check it out when driving past

I'd have thought that priority would be given to upgrading the nearby Segenhoe Rd https://www.google.com.au/maps/@-32.144 ... 312!8i6656 or Sandy Creek Rd at Muswellbrook, as they both seem to be busier https://www.google.com.au/maps/@-32.241 ... 312!8i6656

I

[Username1]

With today's high winds here in Melbourne, the boom gate on the southern side of the Moorooduc Highway railway crossing (formerly McMahons road) Frankston has snapped.

Snapped boom gate.jpg (71.24 KiB) Viewed 8685 times

[TrickyMario7654]

Found this on the ATSB site, there was a level crossing accident at Cobb Hwy, Ivanhoe in July 2017. The investigation is still ongoing but it's probably safe to assume that the crossing will now receive some kind of upgrade. Can't find out much information and not sure if the signals were damaged in the accident. https://www.atsb.gov.au/publications/in ... -2017-005/

The Westinghouse hybrid bell is probably on borrowed time, if it hasn't been replaced already https://www.google.com.au/maps/@-32.914 ... 312!8i6656

Well, the report was released yesterday and sadly, I don't see any pictures of the crossing in it (although there doesn't appear to be any actual damage to the crossing itself)...
https://www.atsb.gov.au/media/5774083/r ... _final.pdf

On the subject of Ivanhoe, NSW, there's another signalized crossing in the area (located on Balranald Road), but it's not on street view.
https://www.google.com.au/maps/@-32.911 ... !1e3?hl=en