There was a pedestrian fatality yesterday on the Barrie line, north of the Aurora GO station. Service had been suspended after the 6:30 am incident, as is always the case, so police could conduct an investigation.
There's no point in complaining to me. I can't personally prevent these incidents and neither can GO Transit and its parent subsidiary, Metrolinx. Sure, fences can be installed along kilometers of track but fences can be compromised.
I've never walked on a train track in my life. You have to ask yourself why you've also refrained from horsing around train tracks. I've also never contemplated ending my life by jumping in front of a train. You have to ask yourself why you've never considered it either. The sad reality is that people do make these decisions and yes, it's an inconvenience, but if you're that bothered by it, become a rail safety advocate. Volunteer your time to work with law enforcement to teach children the dangers of playing on or near train tracks. Or, get involved in with encouraging better mental health.
Don't ask me why GO Transit can't do more to prevent pedestrian fatalities. Ask them and then ask how you can get involved and help prevent them. Maybe begin a petition to install a suicide hotline near and at GO Train stations?
Be proactive, not reactive.
(P.S. The Onion "news" article showcased above is satire)
My take is if this is how you want to end your life, why pick a means that disrupts the schedules of thousands of people? Suicide is a selfish act. No sympathy here.
ReplyDeleteSorry, CJ. You don't have me on this one.
I don't think it's intentional.
ReplyDeleteI'm not an expect in depression or suicide. It's not for me to speculate why this method is chosen.
I'm also not an expert on why people use train tracks as shortcuts but they do and they wear headphones to boot.
cutting 5 min from your walk and getting killed is just stupid....
ReplyDeleteseriously...if they want to commit suicide, do it at home...don't do it during rush hour where thousands of people are trying to get to work or to get home.
@Anonymous: Somebody who is about to commit suicide is obviously not thinking rationally. How can you expect them to think about "the schedules of thousands of people" when the only solution that they can see to their own personal problems is to kill themselves.
ReplyDeleteI feel sympathy for them because they're sick and cannot help themselves.
I volunteered at a Distress Centre for a year. Taking phone calls from the lonely, depressed and such. In the training for it, they discusses suicide. Basically, in the person's mind, they view train as an easy way out. Plus, they think (and remember they are not thinking like a rational person here) that they will finally get the sympathy and recognition that they deserve.
ReplyDeleteIf they were rational, they would realise that this is not the way to go, that inconveniencing thousands of people creates more animosity and negative feelings. But once again, they are not in a rational place in their life.
Placing phones at the GO Stations is an idea, but they will be vandalized and mis-used and eventually they will be removed. Fencing only really works for bridges (ie. the one that crosses the Don). In fact, there is a sign there for the Distress Centre along with the fencing.
As for short cuts: clueless people who don't think through their actions.
C.J. as a former Auroran, I'm not sure why you would use the St. John's Sideroad crossing location as a shortcut.
ReplyDeleteEast and West, St. John's has a modern sidewalk. There is even a purpose built sidewalk over the railway beside the road itself. Just to the west of the crossing is boardwalk over the Mackenzie Marsh that is quite picturesque.
North and south nearby there is a town groomed walking trail that goes for miles. Add to that Industrial Parkway nearby is available as well and not too far East and West are Bayview Avenue and Yonge Street.
There is simply no reason to use the railway as a way to get north or south to anything else. There are much better alternatives.
So perhaps it was either a pedestrian struck at the crossing or a suicide.
It was a 17 yr old that commuted Suicide,
ReplyDeletefrom today's Toronto star
http://www.thestar.com/news/gta/2014/01/17/aurora_high_school_wins_10000_video_contest_days_after_filmmaker_ends_his_life.html
Alexander Roy-Lachapelle committed suicide Tuesday morning, killed by a GO train outside of Aurora station. He was 17
People are so ignorant, concerned about their petty little lives when someone just F***'in died. Yeah you can say its a selfish act but why do people expect someone to act rationally in such situations? OBVIOUSLY their not going to act rationally if they willing to kill themselves in the first place.
ReplyDeleteAlso, as CJ mentioned fences can be and are constantly are being compromised. And when GO try's to build a more resistant barrier like the sound walls they plan on building along the Kitchener line all they get in return is senseless resistance from the ignorant NIMBY's up in Weston.