‘Trespassing on line is dangerous’
Warning after woman seen walking on tracks
A WOMAN was videoed ‘dicing with death’ as she walked along a railway line.
The land between Leek and Cheddleton is regularly used as a walking route, despite being considered an official railway line with tracks still in place.
Now, a video shared on social media by Churnet Valley Railway has shown the moment a woman was walking her dog down the lines while using her mobile phone.
The heritage railway has insisted anyone using the line as a walking route is trespassing on Network Rail land.
In a Facebook post, it said: “Again we find ourselves having to write about trespass.
“We shall not reiterate all that we have said over the legalities of this. However, is this what you would do at Stoke station? Would you walk into the middle of a road and stand and text?
“This is dangerous. If a train does not kill you, tripping or slipping on damp sleepers might just hurt you or even worse.
“Trespass on a railway line is dangerous. For all the complaints we get from some residents that this railway is ‘disused’ or rarely sees trains – then we say this – it is not just the
trains that are dangerous.
“The other comment we often receive is ‘there are no signs.’ There are signs, we find that people do not like signs, so they remove them.
“The motorway is not signed as being dangerous, the side of the canal is not signed as likely to cause drowning. There is only so much we can do.
“If people are going to cut down fences (and publicly comment on social media they have done this), pull down signs, vandalise and damage our coaches, then please do not complain there was not a sign telling you not to trespass.”
Social media users have been left divided on whether they should use the lines as a walking route.
One said: “I don’t think you will ever stop it.”
Another added: “All the time it’s not in use, it makes a lovely walking place with or without dogs and, on the plus side, at least we keep the grass and weeds down waking on them. That saves you money.”