Trespassers caught on railways

Thirty five people were caught trespassing on Tayside’s railways last year, it has been revealed.

There were 22 incidents recorded in the Dundee area and a further 13 around Perthshire in 2016.

In addition, police had 37 reports of trespassing incidents in the Kirkcaldy area.

British Transport Police said that one person trespasses on Britain’s railways every hour, and that such incidents are at an all-time high.

Last year alone there were 710 incidents where people risked their lives on the rail network in Scotland – a 16% rise on the previous year.

Research also shows young people are more likely to take a risk on the tracks, with seasonal peaks in incidents coinciding with the spring and summer school holidays.

Two people under the age of 16 were caught trespassing in Dundee last year.

Simon Constable, head of route safety at Network Rail Scotland, said: “Every April we see a huge rise in the number of people taking a risk on the rail network and it’s worrying that these numbers seem to be going up.

“Britain has the safest railway in Europe but still too many people lose their lives on the tracks.

“The dangers may not always be obvious but the electricity on the railway is always on and trains can travel up to 125 miles per hour, so even if they see you, they can’t stop in time.”