Network Rail guilty of safety failings

♦network Rail has been convicted of safety failings after a signalman suffered a brain injury and broken neck when a car hit a gate he was trying to close at a level crossing.

A court heard that five hours before the incident at East Farleigh station near Maidstone, Kent, on April 24 2015, Doug Caddell reported a near-miss with another vehicle, again as he was closing the gates.

A jury concluded that the government-owned company had failed to properly assess the risks involved in Mr Caddell’s job. The Office of Road and Rail, the safety regulator, reported that the risk assessment was not “suitable or sufficient”.

Network Rail is due to be sentenced at a later date.