SAVED BY A SECOND.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXVII, Issue 20569, 21 May 1930, Page 11

SAVED BY A SECOND.

MOTORIST'S CLOSE CALL. DANGEROUS LEVEL CROSSING. Charged with failing to stop at tho railway crossing at Bunnythorpe, whoro a compulsory stop sign was erected, and with crossing the railway when the line was nor. clear, William A. Waters, engineer to the Manawatu-Oroua Power Board, appeared before Mr. J. L. Stout, S.M., in the Palmerston North Police Court on Monday. Tho first charge was admitted, and the second was withdrawn by iho polico. Defendant stated that though ho had not actually stopped at the crossing he had slowed down to five miles an hour and was in second gear. lie admitted that he had had a narrow escape, but contended that lie had in no way been negligent. When he reached tha corner, ho looked to the station and saw no sign of a train or smoke. When on the rails he heard the roar of the engine and saw it about a chain away. He got clear by 30 or 40 feet. He had later made tests and the measured distance from the first visible point where tho engine was seen from the usual motorists' stopping-place to the crossing was 551 feet only. From a standing start the average time taken to cover thi3 distance was 7.1 seconds. Even if a motorist pulled up, walked to tho line and saw it was clear, he would, if the train had been in tho hollow below the station, get caught just the same. The visibility was very poor and tho crossing was particularly dangerous. Senior-Sergeant Whitehouse agreed that the crossing was a dangerous one and that the visibility of a train was limited. From tho time a train flashed into view to when it reached tho crossing was only five seconds. Defendant said he missed getting trapped by cue second only. The compulsory stop made the position worse. The Magistrate: It is time tho department put one of the now warning devices there. Defendant referred to a discussion by tho Oroua County Council, when the , danger of the crossing had been considered, and reference was made to clumps of trees that obscured the view. " You will not mind paying a fine seeing how closely you escaped," said the magistrate in imposing a penalty of £2, with costs 10s.