Barrier Rose While Train Was Approaching
Witness Captures Dramatic Situation at Lužani - Malino Level Crossing. HŽ Admits Fault and Introduces Special Operating Regime.
Witness Captures Dramatic Situation at Lužani - Malino Level Crossing. HŽ Admits Fault and Introduces Special Operating Regime.
At the Lužani - Malino level crossing in Brod-Posavina County, a dangerous situation occurred when the barrier began to rise while the train was only 500 meters away. The entire incident was captured on video by a witness and posted on social media, with Croatian Railways (HŽ) confirming that the cause was a malfunction in the signaling and safety equipment.
According to the witness, who remained unnamed, he arrived at the crossing from the direction of Lužani while the barrier was down. He noticed that a vehicle ahead of him passed the lowered barrier and crossed the tracks. Together with his cousin Leon Šolčić, he stopped and got out of the vehicle to check if a train was coming.
"You can see the train coming from the direction of Oriovac, but then, shock! The train is about 500 meters from the crossing, and the barrier suddenly starts to rise," the witness described in a social media post. He added that they immediately started waving at the driver on the other side of the crossing to warn them of the approaching train and stopped vehicles coming from the direction of Lužani.
"We waved our hands at the driver on the other side that a train was coming and stopped vehicles coming from the direction of Lužani."
Fortunately, no one was injured, but the witness warned of potentially fatal consequences: "Luckily, everything passed without consequences, but this situation gives us the right to ask: what would have happened if we hadn't stopped, or if we had crossed the tracks after the barrier rose?"
From Croatian Railways, they confirmed to Index.hr that a fault on that section was recorded on August 6, 2026, at 00:23. "On August 6, 2026, at 00:23, a fault was recorded on the device of the isolated section for track occupancy control at the exit from Oriovac station, and consequently on the device securing the Lužani - Malino level crossing," HŽ stated.
They explained that the signaling and safety devices are interconnected, so the fault on the isolated section affected the operation of the crossing protection device, leading to its improper functioning. "We proceeded to rectify the fault as soon as possible, replacing the defective component and conducting an additional inspection of the device's proper operation," they said.
To prevent a recurrence of a similar situation, the Lužani - Malino crossing protection device has been temporarily placed in a special test mode. During this period, every train passing through this route must stop before crossing the road. Once all system components are thoroughly checked and tested, and confirmed to be fully functional, the crossing will resume standard operation.
The dangerous situation occurred the night before last, and the video posted by the witness quickly spread on social media, raising public concern about safety at level crossings.
