Shocking footage of children playing on railway tracks as youth hurls stones at passing cars

Shocking footage has captured children and young people playing near railway tracks and even throwing stones from the lines at passing cars.

Network Rail has released CCTV footage of a child throwing ballast, stones that form the base of the railway, at cars on the A19 from the tracks south of Billingham. Meanwhile, MP Alex Cunningham has made a plea to parents after he was sent a video of children playing on the Shearwater Lane railway crossing, at Crooksbarn, by a concerned resident.

Since April 2022 there has been 35 recorded incidents of trespass, these risky actions may have fatal or severely damaging impacts on the individuals, their families, and everyone else involved, Network Rail has said. This behaviour also sharply increases travel times for passengers, which, in this area, adds up to just under 1,000 minutes of delay since April 2022.

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Footage shared by Mr Cunningham shows two children playing right at the edge of the crossing as a train goes past. In the video one child is seen laying at the edge of the crossing with his head “inches away from a passing train”.

Other footage held by the resident shows a train having to sound it horn as a warning, and even stopping to avoid any potential accidents.

Network Rail says trespassers are largely young people, as well as some dog walkers, cutting across from one area to another as a shortcut There are a large number of videos and images of trespassers that covert cameras are picking up in this area, including of the vandalism taking place next to the A19.