“BETTER five minutes late in this world than five minutes early in the next!” That’s the watchword from local police who are becoming increasingly concerned about the number of people - adults as well as children - crossing the rail line between Rosehaugh Road and Wyvis Place.
Modern trains are very quiet, and there are far more engines using the line than just the scheduled passenger trains. So at any hour there could be tons of metal moving along the track, moving goods, repositioning, going in for maintenance or for some other reason.
Crossing the line is both illegal and dangerous, and besides the pedestrians lives, those on the trains are being put at risk as well. Unfortunately, the police say, they can’t be there all the time to actually catch everyone who breaks the law by crossing the line. But they have been speaking to vulnerable youngsters and pointing out some of the very real dangers.
Adults are also guilty of this practice, and the police are encouraging them to think of the bad example they are showing youngsters in the area by crossing the line.
“We’ve been lucky there has been no-one hurt yet - but it’s just a matter of time if people keep on doing it,” say the police.
They are also urging parents to help their children “think safety”, particularly over the holiday period. And asking parents to ensure that they know, more or less, where their children have gone to when they go off to play.
Anyone seeing youngsters playing on the railway line should either discourage them or contact the police or British Transport Police.