WA Transport Minister Rita Saffioti cries in parliament during emotional rail crossing safety discussion

WA Transport Minister Rita Saffioti has broken down in tears while talking about road and rail safety in State Parliament just weeks her cousin’s son was killed in a tragic road accident. Ms Saffioti’s cousin’s 15-year-old son Tom Saffioti, and his 17-year-old friend Mark Bogoni, were killed when the Mitsubishi Lancer sedan they were travelling in with four other teenagers hit a kerb and crashed into a tree in Seville Grove on September 30. During private members business in State Parliament this afternoon, Ms Saffioti stood to respond to a motion moved by WA Nationals leader Mia Davies calling on WA Labor to bolster safety at passive rail crossings across the State after the death of three young friends 21 years ago. Christian Jensen, 20, Hilary Smith, 19, and Jess Broad, 18, were killed by a grain train at the Yarramony Crossing near Jennacubbine on July 8, 2000. Their fatal accident occurred seven years after 22-year-old Grass Valley resident Amanda Dempster was killed at the same passive level crossing. It took just 15 seconds into her speech for Ms Saffioti’s voice to shake, before she started to cry. After a long pause, she spoke through tears to say she “did want to acknowledge deaths and the impact they would have had” on the Jensen, Broad, Smith and Dempster families. “Many families are impacted by deaths on roads and I don’t want to dwell on that too much because of what has recently happened to my family,” she said. “I can understand the emotional toll deaths have on families, in particular when young people are involved. It is a tragedy. “I can understand the pain these parents would have had over the past 20 years. No one can ever replace the sons, daughters, the brothers or sisters that are lost on our roads.” During her moving speech, Ms Saffioti apologised for becoming upset but said that the issue was still “raw” for her. “I didn't really set out to get upset as much as I did. But it is a real issue,” she said. “When your child goes to a 21st birthday party, you want them to come home.” About four minutes later, she broke down again, saying she was “thinking about other things” before soldiering on with the rest of her presentation dry-eyed. Ms Davies’ motion called on WA Labor to “invest in (rail safety) initiatives” and lobby the Federal Government to improve the “critical issue” nationwide. She backed calls for “three simple yet effective changes” put forward by Jensen, Smith, Broad and Dempster families. Ms Davies read a letter by Christian’s sister, Lara, which was sent to Ms Davies and Federal Nationals leader and Federal Transport Minister Barnaby Joyce earlier this year on behalf of seven families whose loved ones had been killed by trains. The changes include: Speaking to the motion, Ms Davies revealed she herself had experienced near-misses with freight trains while travelling her sprawling Central Wheatbelt electorate. “Everybody will have a story of a near miss if you have travelled in regional WA,” she said. “Interstate there are further sobering examples of trucks and trains colliding. “While it is safe to say these incidences are relatively rare... they leave a mark on so many people’s lives. “I think we all agree that the loss of even one life is too much, when we describe road safety.” She implored Ms Saffioti to open a discussion about rail safety. “I hope this can be a positive starting point for how we can work together to address these concerns,” Ms Davies said. “There has to be a way we can work together with the State Government, industry and Commonwealth so we are not back here in 20 years having the same discussion. “I hope that these families’ pleas do not fall on deaf ears.” Ms Saffioti said she was open to discussing the issue with Ms Davies and would also speak with Mr Joyce. She revealed she had watched ABC Landline on Sunday — “which I don’t normally do” — and had been moved by the segment focused on the rail safety campaign. “I thought to myself ‘maybe we can all do better’, and I acknowledge that,” she said. Ms Saffioti pledged to “take up” the issue of additional lighting on trains and the need for ultra-high frequency radio communication between train and car drivers. “The costs could be significant but (rail safety upgrades) are something worth discussing,” she said. “It is something I will ask my agencies, the federal safety agencies and the Federal Transport Minister about. “We are very keen to work with the Commonwealth, to see what measures we can put in place... to work out what we can improve over time. “In rural and regional WA, you don’t have a lot of interaction (with trains) but you want to have good visibility and stay safe.” Ms Saffioti said there were 3000 level crossings in WA, 1327 of which were on public roads. This included 491 actively patrolled level crossings, including 161 active crossings with boom barriers and 330 crossings with flashing lights.