Prevention of railway trespassing by automatic sound warning—A pilot study

<b>Objective</b>: The objective of this study was to investigate the effects of a sound warning system on the frequency of trespassing at 2 pilot test sites in Finland. <b>Methods</b>: The effect of automatic prerecorded sound warning on the prevention of railway trespassing was evaluated based on observations at 2 test sites in Finland. At both sites an illegal footpath crossed the railway, and the average daily number of trespassers before implementation of the measures was about 18 at both sites. <b>Results</b>: The results showed that trespassing was reduced at these sites by 18 and 44%, respectively. Because of the lack of proper control sites, it is possible that the real effects of the measure are somewhat smaller. <b>Conclusions</b>: The current study concludes that automatic sound warning may be efficient and cost effective at locations where fencing is not a viable option. However, it is not likely to be a cost-effective panacea for all kinds of sites where trespassing occurs, especially in countries like Finland where trespassing is scattered along the railway network rather than concentrated to a limited number of sites.

**研究目标**：本研究旨在探究声音警示系统（sound warning system）对芬兰两处试点测试站点铁路擅闯行为（railway trespassing）发生频率的影响。
**研究方法**：本研究以芬兰两处测试站点的实地观测数据为基础，评估自动预录式声音警示系统对铁路擅闯行为的防控效果。两处测试站点均存在非法人行步道横穿铁路的情况，且在该防控措施实施前，两处站点的日均擅闯人数均约为18人次。
**研究结果**：结果显示，两处站点的铁路擅闯行为分别降低了18%和44%。由于缺乏合适的对照站点，该措施的实际效果可能略低于观测结果。
**研究结论**：本研究表明，在围栏布设不可行的场景下，自动声音警示系统具备高效性与成本效益优势。但该系统并非适用于所有擅闯行为发生场景的成本效益万能良方，尤其在芬兰这类铁路擅闯行为分散于路网沿线而非集中于少量站点的国家中，其成本效益难以得到保障。