Railway safety risks

The province has allocated funds to localities to set up guard posts at some "self-opened paths" with high risk of traffic accidents. In the photo: Guard post at Duy Son commune, Duy Xuyen, near Tra Kieu station. Photo: SC

The North-South railway through Quang Nam is 91.5km long, with 58 legal level crossings and 61 self-opened crossings, some sections passing through densely populated areas.

Decision No. 2044, dated July 30, 2020 of the Provincial People's Committee clearly states that to eliminate all self-opened paths through the area, it is necessary to build about 3km of service roads in urban areas and densely populated areas, along with 23km of service roads in less populated areas and a number of overpasses and underpasses.

However, building service roads in urban areas and densely populated areas outside the land area reserved for railways as prescribed will be difficult.

Because the land clearance work, compensation and support costs are very large because people's houses and structures have been built to the edge of the land boundary for the railway, there is no more land to arrange service roads.

The leader of the Department of Transport said that the plan to ensure traffic safety at road and railway intersections has also been approved by the Provincial People's Committee in Decision No. 2044.

However, the volume of work carried out does not ensure the required progress. The reason is that in 2023, the Department of Transport proposed to build a service road to eliminate "self-opened paths" in Dien Ban, Phu Ninh, and Nui Thanh but was not allocated funding. The Provincial People's Committee assigned the locality to implement but so far it has not been implemented.

Therefore, the plan to eliminate all self-opened paths in the province by 2025 as prescribed in Point a, Clause 2, Article 16 of Decree No. 65, dated May 12, 2018 of the Government detailing the implementation of a number of railway laws is difficult to implement.

Therefore, the Department of Transport recommends that the Vietnam Railway Authority report to the central ministries, branches and the Provincial People's Committee report to the Provincial People's Council for consideration and planning to support investment capital to remove self-opened paths.

The functional sector also recommended that the Vietnam Railway Authority consider and approve the construction of service roads and protective fences to eliminate self-opened paths in some cases within the land area reserved for railways according to the provisions of Article 26, Decree No. 56 dated April 16, 2018 of the Government "Construction of essential works within the land area reserved for railways".

Only then will the locality be more favorable in the implementation process, ensuring traffic safety, train safety, and contributing to the modernization of the railway industry.

Source: https://baoquangnam.vn/nguy-co-mat-an-toan-duong-sat-3138112.html