But the reason people are allowed to walk alongside roads, and not
alongside
railways, is that roads are inherently safer because the vehicles can stop
much more quickly than rail vehicles, and also steer out of the way of
danger.

Most of the 300-odd "trespassers and suicides" who die on the railways each
year would not die on the roads in the same circumstances because drivers
would stop or steer around them.

If railways had pavements running alongside them, and frequent open
crossings unprotected by gates or signals, they would kill *a lot* more
periods.

Railways are fenced because they are dangerous.

There seems to be something missing from your argument which took me a
moment to realize - You have made the unfortunately true assumption that
most people are, to put it bluntly, thick as pig ****. Railways are only
dangerous if you stand between the rails. Your saying that road vehicles can
swerve out of the way and stop faster is rather indicative that people have
a habit of getting in the way of large moving objects.

Ronnie
--
http://www.blugman.freeserve.co.uk

As the wise man says:
"Remember - there is no more important safety rule than to wear these:
safety glasses"