Train lighting petition racks up votes with support from country music legend Lee Kernaghan

A petition demanding a minimum legal standard for train lighting has closed, garnering 6601 signatures, as well as the support of major peak bodies and country music legend Lee Kernaghan. Durack MHR Melissa Price and North West Central MLA Merome Beard co-launched the petition in collaboration with the Train Lighting and Passive level Crossing Safety Group on July 3. The document, which was one of the five most supported Federal petitions for the month of July, requested that Parliament implement mandatory legislation requiring rotating beacons on the front of locomotives, and side lighting on both locomotives and rolling stock to improve railway safety. Spokesperson for the train lighting campaign Lara Jensen said she was “pleased” with the outcome. “To me those 6601 signatures gathered in just a month represent 6601 very good reasons why the government needs to act and legislate train lighting legislation in Australia once and for all,” she said. “Our families and supporting organisations are tired of the senseless carnage and the tragic legacies of these completely preventable rail crashes spanning decades.” The WA Nationals also threw their support behind the campaign, along with peak bodies such as the National Farmers’ Federation and the Australian Trucking Association. Even country music legend Lee Kernaghan took to social media and called on everyone to sign the petition. “Too many lives have been lost at level crossings throughout Australia and despite a coroners enquiry recommending mandatory safety lighting for trains and 24 years of lobbying government departments and ministers, nothing has been done,” Mr Kernaghan wrote in a Facebook post. “Victim’s families are demanding a mandatory national code that will help keep people travelling on country roads safer when approaching level crossings at night.” When the petition was first launched, a spokesperson for Transport Minister Catherine King told Countryman the Government was committed to “the goal of zero harm” at level crossings. The spokesperson said the Office of the National Rail Safety Regulator was developing a Train Visibility Code of Practice, which had “strong support” from the rail industry. However, Ms Jensen along with the ATA and the NFF have criticised this Code for its legally non-binding nature. Ms King defended the Code, and said while it was not legally binding, it would provide “substantial incentive” for rail operators to comply with lighting recommendations because it can be used in court proceedings. Following the petition’s close, Ms King told Countryman the Government “acknowledged the ongoing efforts” of those pushing for mandated train lighting standards, however, stood by the voluntary Code which would “fast track” immediate rail safety. “It (the Code) has wide support from governments, industry and regulators, and large operators including Aurizon and Pacific National have committed to adopting the code once it is finalised,” she said. “The code is the most effective near-term measure to increase train illumination, and carries weight with the courts when considering whether an operator has fulfilled their general safety duties, which provides a substantial incentive for compliance with the code.” However, Ms Jensen said train lighting must not be left to “self-regulation”, and the rail industry should have the same legal lighting requirements that other industries, such a trucking, have to comply with. “It is completely clear to our families that the rail industry will not act on this visibility lighting issue which is why we have called on the Government to intervene,” she said.