Barrier arm headaches in Hastings

A fault on rail crossing barrier arms is causing traffic problems in Hastings. Photo / Paul Taylor

A barrier-arm malfunction caused traffic headaches in Hastings on Sunday.

Barrier arms were down at level crossings across the city at 10am, despite the railway line being closed from Waipawa north due to damage sustained in the cyclone.

At Eastbourne St, three good Samaritans were raising them by hand in order to allow traffic to flow.

Some cars had been stuck at the crossing for at least 10 minutes before the bystander intervention.

Simon Granville was out directing traffic from all directions.

”I’ve lost my vocation; I’m now a traffic warden,” he told Hawke’s Bay Today.

A KiwiRail worker was on-site and the barrier malfunctions were being fixed one at a time.

“The automatic activation of warning devices like bells, flashing lights and barriers at level crossings in Hastings was deactivated this morning due to a power outage,” a KiwiRail spokesperson said.

“When an issue like this power outage occurs, barrier arms at level crossings are designed to lower to prevent entry into the rail corridor and ensure the safety of pedestrians and vehicles.”

The spokesperson said KiwiRail staff switched the system to manual, which meant they were then able to lift the barriers and allow vehicles to pass.

KiwiRail executive general manager operations, Paul Ashton, said due to a power supply issue, 10 level crossings were activated in the area.

Crossing alarm and barrier systems are designed to “fail safe” under such circumstances so the barrier arms came down, preventing vehicles from crossing the rail line, he said.

He said staff arrived shortly after and manually raised seven of the barrier arms, allowing traffic to flow.

“Staff are working to resolve this issue as soon as possible”.