--- title: "Today's children are tomorrow's drivers: Why rail safety is road safety" date: 2026-08-10T17:02:00+10:00 author: Kirsten Woolley canonical_url: "https://tasrail.com.au/news/todays-children-are-tomorrows-drivers-why-rail-safety-is-road-safety" section: News --- 1. [ Home](https://tasrail.com.au/) 2. [News](https://tasrail.com.au/news) 3. Today's children are tomorrow's drivers: Why rail safety is road safety # Today's children are tomorrow's drivers: Why rail safety is road safety TasRail is urging all Tasmanians to remember that rail safety IS road safety this Rail Safety Week (10–16 August), with education initiatives that aim to help the next generation of drivers make safer decisions at railway level crossings. Post Date### 10 Aug 2026 Categories### [Media Releases, ](https://tasrail.com.au/news/category/media-releases) [Campaigns, ](https://tasrail.com.au/news/category/campaigns) [Community Engagement, ](https://tasrail.com.au/news/category/community-engagement) [Social media ](https://tasrail.com.au/news/category/social-media) ![Tas Rail100826 621](https://tasrail.com.au/volumes/images/_1000x600_crop_center-center_70_none/23824/TasRail100826-621.webp) While reported failures to stop or give way at Tasmania's level crossings have reduced from 137 to 104 over the past year, TasRail Chief Executive Officer Steven Dietrich said the figures remain deeply disappointing. "Any incident at a level crossing is one too many," Mr Dietrich said. "One hundred and four motorists failed to stop or give way at a railway crossing last year. That's 104 occasions where someone made a decision that could have had devastating consequences." Two collisions also occurred during the reporting period. TasRail Risk and Compliance Principal Corrie Summers echoed Mr Dietrich’s sentiment and said that, disappointingly, trespass incidents had increased from 82 to 98. “These aren't just statistics, they represent real risks to motorists, pedestrians, train crews, emergency responders and our communities, Ms Summers said. “Rail yards are 24/7 industrial work sites and should only ever be accessed by trained staff and personnel. Members of the public should never enter a working railyard as a matter of safety. You wouldn’t walk your dog or go for a run in a building site, don’t do it in a rail yard. There is no such thing as a safe shortcut through the rail corridor,” she said. Ms Summers said that, while enforcement and infrastructure improvements remain important, this year TasRail would also be focusing on education in an effort to achieve long-term behavioural change. "Rail safety is road safety. Every person learning to drive should understand how to safely approach a railway crossing and why those road rules matter,” she said. "Our trains can be up to one kilometre long. They can't swerve and they can't stop quickly. The warning signs and signals at level crossings are there for one reason - to save lives." Earlier this year, TasRail welcomed children from the Thrive Out of School Hours Care program to its East Tamar Workshops, where they learned about rail safety and how to stay safe around the rail corridor. The program was so well received that Thrive has now incorporated rail safety education across its services. "It's encouraging to see young Tasmanians engaging so enthusiastically with these important messages," Ms Summers said. "Today's children are tomorrow's drivers. If we can build good habits early, we have every reason to believe the next generation will make safer choices than the last." Over the next 12 months, TasRail will continue working with the Tasmanian Government to strengthen learner driver education, ensuring level crossing safety remains an important part of learning to drive. "This Rail Safety Week, we're asking every Tasmanian to take a few extra seconds at every crossing," Ms Summers said. "Stop. Look. Listen. Those few seconds could save your life - or someone else's." Rail Safety Week is a national initiative coordinated by the TrackSAFE Foundation to promote safe behaviour around railways. [www.tracksafefoundation.com.au/event/rail-safety-week/](http://www.tracksafefoundation.com.au/event/rail-safety-week/) for more information. **Incident****South****North****Northwest****Total****Trespass in the rail corridor**15 (4)34 (42)49 (36)98 (82)**Level crossing – failure to stop or give way**8 (15)20 (40)74 (82)104 (137)**Crossings of concern:** Wilson St (Wellington/Edwardes), Burnie; Main Street, Ulverstone; Reiby Street, Ulverstone; Reeves Street, Burnie; River Road, Burnie; Stoney Rise Road, Devonport. ![](https://tasrail.com.au/volumes/images/TasRail100826-620.jpg)![](https://tasrail.com.au/volumes/images/TasRail100826-623.jpg)![](https://tasrail.com.au/volumes/images/TasRail100826-610.jpg) [ 16 Jul ![Perth Copy](https://tasrail.com.au/volumes/images/_600x400_crop_center-center_none/23733/perth1-Copy.webp) ## History reminds us why level crossing safety matters \+ Read More ](https://tasrail.com.au/news/history-reminds-us-why-level-crossing-safety-matters)