Swinging Gate calls for attention

KOCHI: The proposal by the Railways to replace the ‘swinging gate’ model level crossing at the Mattanchery halt by a more advanced level crossing system is gaining dust. The swinging gate which was manufactured years ago, was seen as a threat in the past when there was a heavy rush of train traffic on the Mattanchery route, sources said. “Soon, the Railways stopped talking about replacing the gate as only a few cargo trains were passing through the route,” said a Railways’ employee.According to railway staff, in the past few days, the swinging gate has once again become a headache as more cargo trains have started moving on the route. “There are proposals from the division to increase freight trains enroute this region soon. If the plan is implemented, there will be an urgent need to replace the gate,” said a railway staff.The swinging gate unlike any under the Thiruvananthapuram division, consists of four gates which have to be opened and closed manually. “By the time it is dragged and closed it takes at least five extra minutes  compared to other gates at other crossings,” the employee said.According to railway officials, the proposal to replace the gate was put forward at least ten years ago and then the Navy was dead against the idea. “We had proposed to convert the swinging gate into a lifting barrier which is commonly found at all other level crossings. However, the Naval authorities refuted the plan saying that the lifting barrier, which is at least 30-feet high, would affect their planes. The argument is completely baseless. We are still pushing the Navy on this matter,” said Vijay Singh, senior divisional manager of the Railways.