Arbroath level crossing closed after car damages barriers

The level crossing over the east coast main railway line in Arbroath’s Wellgate, which links Stobcross with John Street west beside Angus Council’s Bruce House office, has been closed to traffic after the gates were damaged by a motorist.

A spokesman for Network Rail said, “The level crossing gates were struck by a vehicle which failed to stop and that is a matter which is now in the hands of the police.

“The gates fitted at this crossing are not of a standard size and are, therefore, not carried as part of our engineering maintenance stock so replacement gates are having to be made up.

“This will obviously take some time, but we aim to have the crossing in use again as soon as possible.”

The crossing was closed between September 2005 and July 2007, after a fault in the gates’ lifting mechanism prompted Network Rail to lobby for its permanent closure on the grounds of safety.

Angus Council, however, refused to allow the link to be removed following appeals from the public.