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The British Transport Police is a national special police force that polices railways and light-rail systems in England, Wales and Scotland, for which it has entered into an agreement to provide such services. The force is funded primarily by the rail industry, and does not receive central government funding. British Transport Police officers do not have jurisdiction in Northern Ireland unless working under mutual aid arrangements for the Police Service of Northern Ireland, in which case any duties performed on a railway will be merely incidental to working as a constable in Northern Ireland.
The Special Constabulary is the part-time volunteer section of statutory police forces in the United Kingdom and some Crown dependencies. Its officers are known as special constables.
The Automatic Warning System (AWS) was introduced in the 1950s in the United Kingdom to provide a train driver with an audible warning and visual reminder that they were approaching a distant signal at caution. Its operation was later extended to give warnings for;
Part of a railway signalling system, a train stop, trip stop or tripcock is a train protection device that automatically stops a train if it attempts to pass a signal when the signal aspect and operating rules prohibit such movement, or if it attempts to pass at an excessive speed.
Cumbria Constabulary is the territorial police force in England covering Cumbria. As of September 2017, the force had 1,108 police officers, 535 police staff, 93 police community support officers, and 86 special constables.
The Cambrian Line, also known as the Cambrian Main Line and Cambrian Coast Line, is a railway line that runs from Shrewsbury, England, westwards to Aberystwyth and Pwllheli in Wales. Passenger train services are operated by Transport for Wales Rail between the western terminals of Pwllheli, Gwynedd, and Aberystwyth, Ceredigion, with the eastern terminal at Shrewsbury, Shropshire as part of the Wales & Borders franchise. The railway line is regarded to be scenic, as it passes through the Cambrian Mountains in central Wales, Snowdonia National Park and along the coast of Cardigan Bay.
On 6 January 1968, a low-loader transporter carrying a 120-ton electrical transformer was struck by a British Rail express train on a recently installed automatic level crossing at Hixon, Staffordshire, England.
The Purley station rail crash was a train collision that occurred just to the north of Purley railway station in the London Borough of Croydon on Saturday 4 March 1989, leaving five dead and 88 injured. The collision was caused by the driver of one of the trains passing a signal at danger; he pleaded guilty to manslaughter and was sentenced to 12 months in prison plus six months suspended, although this was reduced to four months upon appeal, and in 2007 overturned. The Department of Transport report noted that the signal had a high incidence of being passed at danger and recommended that an automatic train protection system should be introduced without delay and in the interim a repeater for the signal that had been passed be installed.
Metal theft is "the theft of items for the value of their constituent metals". It usually increases when worldwide prices for scrap metal rise, as has happened dramatically due to rapid industrialization in India and China. Apart from precious metals like gold and silver, the metals most commonly stolen are non-ferrous metals such as copper, aluminium, brass, and bronze. However, even cast iron and steel are seeing higher rates of theft due to increased scrap metal prices.
Automatic train control (ATC) is a general class of train protection systems for railways that involves a speed control mechanism in response to external inputs. For example, a system could effect an emergency brake application if the driver does not react to a signal at danger. ATC systems tend to integrate various cab signalling technologies and they use more granular deceleration patterns in lieu of the rigid stops encountered with the older automatic train stop technology. ATC can also be used with automatic train operation (ATO) and is usually considered to be the safety-critical part of the system.
Lancashire Constabulary is the territorial police force responsible for policing the ceremonial county of Lancashire in North West England. The force's headquarters are at Hutton, near the city of Preston. As of September 2020, the force has 3,088 police officers, 190 special constables, and 280 police community support officers (PCSO), 300 police support volunteers (PSV), and 2,287 staff.
Route crime is a phrase used by the British rail industry to denote trespass and vandalism. It is believed to be the cause of most deaths to members of the public on the railways in Britain. Most route crime-related deaths are suicides with the rest being trespass-related.
Communications-based train control (CBTC) is a railway signaling system that makes use of telecommunications between the train and track equipment for traffic management and infrastructure control. By means of CBTC systems, the position of a train is known more accurately than with traditional signaling systems. This results in a more efficient and safe way to manage railway traffic. Metros are able to improve headways while maintaining or even improving safety.
Operation Crucible is a police-led, multi-agency investigation into the organised theft and unlawful trade of metal in England and Wales. Involved agencies include:
The European Rail Traffic Management System (ERTMS) is an initiative backed by the European Union to enhance cross-border interoperability and the procurement of signalling equipment by creating a single Europe-wide standard for train control and command systems.
There are around 6,000 level crossings in the United Kingdom, of which about 1,500 are public highway crossings. This number is gradually being reduced as the risk of accidents at level crossings is considered high. The director of the UK Railway Inspectorate commented in 2004 that "the use of level crossings contributes the greatest potential for catastrophic risk on the railways." The creation of new level crossings on the national network is banned, with bridges and tunnels being the more favoured options. The cost of making significant reductions, other than by simply closing the crossings, is substantial; some commentators argue that the money could be better spent. Some 5,000 crossings are user-worked crossings or footpaths with very low usage. The removal of crossings can improve train performance and lower accident rates, as some crossings have low rail speed limits enforced on them to protect road users. In fact, between 1845 and 1933, there was a 4 miles per hour (6.4 km/h) speed limit on level crossings of turnpike roads adjacent to stations for lines whose authorising Act of Parliament had been consolidated in the Railways Clauses Consolidation Act 1845 although this limit was at least sometimes disregarded.
Metal theft in the United Kingdom is the systematic and organised theft of high-value metal in the United Kingdom.
Automatic Train Protection (ATP) was a method of beacon based railway cab signalling developed by British Rail. The system never progressed beyond the pilot schemes installed on the Great Western Main Line between London Paddington and Bristol, and the Chiltern Main Line from London Marylebone to High Wycombe and Aylesbury.
References
- ↑ Operational Police officers[ full citation needed ]
- Charlotte Bradshaw (9 December 2006). "Police hope to 'cop' metal thiefs". Lancashire Telegraph. Retrieved 21 December 2006.