The incident happened just before 8.30am, amid peak morning school and worker traffic. Photo / Warren Buckland
The incident happened just before 8.30am, amid peak morning school and worker traffic. Photo / Warren Buckland
A Napier Boys' High School pupil who was critically injured after colliding with a train in peak morning traffic is now listed in a serious condition.
The teenager, who was previously listed as critical, was struck on State Highway 51 and Ellison St, adjacent to Marine Parade on Thursday morning.
KiwiRail earlier rejected a rush-hour stop on trains using the Napier crossing where the student was hit.
KiwiRail lower North Island general manager Paul Ashton earlier said about 10 trains used the crossing on average every day, and Thursday's accident was the first of its type there in at least 15 years.
"Our train schedule is designed to meet the requirements of our freight customers in the Hawke's Bay region," he said.
"We would not introduce a close-out time period when no trains would travel through the Ellison St crossing and, for safety's sake, we encourage the public to always expect trains."
KiwiRail says, for safety's sake, its encourages the public "to always expect trains". Photo / NZME
He said KiwiRail operates 24 hours a day and 365 days a week throughout New Zealand: "We urge people to stay alert as they approach a level crossing, obey the warning signs and be prepared to stop. Trains can come at any time, from either direction."
The Thursday morning train was heading from Napier towards Hastings when the boy was struck. The engine stopped about 200m from the crossing, blocking it. The crossing was closed to road traffic while the boy was rescued and placed in an ambulance and while police investigated.
"KiwiRail knows all too well the impact that a collision can have on victims, witnesses, emergency services and our staff, and on friends and families," Ashton said. "My thoughts are with everyone involved in this latest, awful incident."
Staff at neighbouring Napier Boys' High School and Te Awa Primary School, the rolls of which total more than 1300 pupils, have been increasingly concerned about dangers for pupils on the surrounding streets, intersections and the crossing.
Traffic flow has increased sharply in recent years from residential development in Te Awa south of the schools and further afield, from 100km/h areas entering the urban zones of 50km/h.
