In recent times, the North-South railway line passing through Hanoi has witnessed several serious accidents, most of them caused by road users deliberately ignoring railway barriers.

At around 8:03pm on March 8, a serious railway accident occurred at an informal residential crossing with warning signs near house number 210 Ngoc Hoi Street in Hoang Liet ward, Hanoi, leaving one person dead at the scene.

At the time, a man riding a motorbike with license plate 17L1-60XX was traveling along Ngoc Hoi Street toward Thuong Tin. When he reached the informal crossing, his motorbike suddenly collided with train SE19 passing through the area.

The victim and the motorbike were thrown approximately 20 meters after the impact, resulting in his immediate death.

The motorbike was completely deformed following the collision.

Notably, even after the fatal accident, dangerous scenes of motorcyclists ignoring railway barriers continued to occur at crossings along the same railway line.

At 9:17pm that evening, at an automatic barrier crossing near alley 298 Ngoc Hoi Street, VietNamNet reporters observed two motorcyclists crossing the tracks despite warning lights and alarms indicating that a train was approaching and the barrier had already lowered.

Less than one minute after the two riders crossed the barrier, a train passed through the same location.

Along this railway section, reporters recorded dozens of informal crossings created by local residents. Many of these points lack warning lights, guards or barriers, and are marked only by simple traffic signs, posing significant risks to safety.

According to a representative from Road Traffic Police Team No. 14 under the Hanoi Traffic Police Department, more than 40 informal crossings currently exist along the railway line passing through Hoang Liet ward, Dai Thanh commune and Thanh Tri commune in Hanoi.

“In recent times, the unit has issued official requests to local authorities in communes and wards to firmly close these self created crossings in order to ensure traffic safety,” the representative said.

Traffic police regularly conduct inspections and close unauthorized crossings along the railway.

Regarding enforcement against those who deliberately ignore railway signals or barriers, the representative said functional forces frequently deploy patrol teams and use cameras to record violations for later penalties.

“Enforcement is carried out regularly and continuously. However, the most important factor is still the awareness and compliance of vehicle operators,” the representative emphasized.

Dinh Hieu