- Queensland Rail's Community Education team has just wrapped up a tour of North Queensland, delivering vital rail safety messages to students living along the North Coast rail line.
- 26 schools and early learning centres in the Cassowary Coast, Townsville and Burdekin regions were targeted.
- Railsmart, the program that teaches students about how to safely navigate the Queensland Rail network, has already reached more than 38,000 young Queenslanders this year.
Queensland Rail's Community Education team has delivered essential safety education to thousands of students from the Cassowary Coast, Townsville and Burdekin regions.
Across October, the team visited 26 schools and early learning centres between Tully and Home Hill on the North Coast rail line, engaging more than 2,900 primary school students through interactive sessions focused on making safe choices around the rail corridor.
The educational program forms part of Queensland Rail's Railsmart initiative, which promotes safe behaviours around trains, tracks, stations and level crossings.
This year alone, Queensland Rail has delivered rail and public transport safety education to more than 38,000 young Queenslanders, helping students understand the potentially life-changing consequences of unsafe behaviour around railways.
Queensland Rail Community Education Team Leader Dave Webber said North Queensland was home to active rail corridors where awareness and education played an important role in keeping communities safe.
"Every day, trains travel through communities across North Queensland, and it's important that young people understand how to stay safe around the rail network," Mr Webber said.
"Rail safety starts with the decisions we make, particularly around level crossings where people need to stop, look, listen and follow all signs and signals.
"With young people more prone to risk taking behaviour, this program plays a critical role in highlighting potential dangers and reinforcing safe behaviour around tracks and level crossings.
"We also talk about train etiquette, how to travel safely on public transport, the speed and weight of trains, how long they take to stop, and the dangers of high-voltage electricity.
"Many people don't realise trains can take more than a kilometre to stop, or that the overhead electrical system carries 25,000 volts of electricity.
"By making these sessions engaging and memorable, we hope students not only take these important messages home to their families but become advocates for rail safety within their communities."
The North Queensland tour included visits to schools and education centres in Tully, Cardwell, Rollingstone, Townsville, Ayr, Home Hill and surrounding communities throughout October.
