People are being urged not to be "dur brains" by trespassing on train tracks as part of an innovative new campaign for this year's Rail Safety Week.
Appealing new 'Train Brain' characters are being used to communicate safety messages in a campaign launched by KiwiRail on Monday, in association with the Chris Cairns Foundation and supported by the NZ Police.
KiwiRail chief executive Jim Quinn says the company decided to take the awareness campaign in a different direction this year to better engage with children and teenagers.
There were 20 pedestrians killed on train tracks in the past year and five seriously injured.
"Over the last year further improvements have been made to rail infrastructure to reduce the opportunity for trespass, including new fencing at trespassing trouble spots, but it continues to be a problem."
According to rail safety campaigner and former international test cricketer Chris Cairns, there doesn't appear to be a stereotypical trespasser. "They may not even be train users, but people taking short cuts along or across train tracks because they see it as more convenient than using a proper railway crossing."
The new Train Brain characters can be seen on a fun video and computer game on www.kiwirail.co.nz. There is also an online Train Brain teaser to test people's rail safety knowledge and win $100 worth of Westfield or iTunes vouchers.