A railway company’s plans to close the signal box in Wem could have ‘catastrophic effects’ on people’s safety, a councillor has claimed this week.
Wem town councillors have been told by the Crewe-Shrewsbury Passenger Association (CASPA) that during the next two years Network Rail wants to get rid of all signal boxes on the line. It also plans to control all signalling from Cardiff.
Councillor John Murray has expressed fears that the town’s level crossing is one of the most complicated in the area and if the signal box was closed it would put people’s lives at risk.
“If the signal box closes it could have catastrophic effects on people’s safety, and the rail company needs to be informed of the danger of their proposed actions,” he said.
“We are very concerned with these proposals – not only with the threat it has on people’s lives, but also people working in the signal boxes could lose their jobs,” he said.
“The boxes are manned for a reason – the other week a shopping trolley was found on the line and was removed safely, but the outcome might have been different if the signal box had been closed.”
John Cresswell, chairman of the CASPA, said that proposals were a result of Network Rail’s plan to re-signal the line and bring facilities up to modern standard.
He said: “I am aware of the concerns in Wem because effectively they have got a level crossing in the middle of a mini roundabout and Network Rail might need to look at this area closely before making any final decisions.”
Wem Town Council has pledged to send a letter to Network Rail, and north Shropshire MP Owen Paterson, to seek confirmation about the signal box changes and express their safety concerns.
A spokesperson from Network Rail said: “In terms of signalling we would not make any changes that would jeopardise people’s safety which is our number one priority.
“It is safer to have all signalling done from one area and in terms of level crossings we would have them being watched by CCTV.”
MP Owen Paterson said if anyone had concerns about the closure of the signal boxes they should email him at patersono@parliament.uk
by James Pugh
