Better prevent than be sorry
Better prevent than be sorry
Can signs save lives?
Problem: insufficient communication with the risk group passengers
Unfortunately thousands of people die every year on the railroads of Europe due to suicide attempts.
Many human lives could be saved if there was a specialized helpline phone number in the right place at the right time.
Rail Message innovative magnetic signage is a solution designed to effectively tackle precisely that problem.
"There is no train. The passengers are waiting." reports ExtraBladet news outlet. The true reason for cancellations is usually not announced in public to avoid a copycat scenario.
The terrible truth is that more than 2000 people die every year in Europe from a preventable cause, while the value of human life should surpass all other values in a humanistic society.
Railway suicide attempts not only cause physical impairments and fatalities that are tragic for family and friends, but they also cause damage to the railway vehicles and infrastructure, result in cancellations, delays, trafic disruption, traumas to train drivers, passengers and witnesses.
Suicides are reported separately from accident fatalities. They represent more than 75% of all fatalities on railways. On average, about six suicides are recorded every day on railways in the EU.
According to the research conducted by the European Union Agency for Railways and DNV GL, the financial annual cost of suicide at railway premises in Europe is also very considerable, estimated at €7.1 billion per annum, which is comprised of an overwhelming collateral damage to the society in addition to the high average direct cost exceeding €100.000 per case.
In Germany alone there are more than 600 railway suicides per year with damage exceeding
€2 million per case, and over €1 billion in total per year.
Suicidal behavior, according to scientists, is highly preventable. Nine out of ten people who attempt suicide and survive will not go on to die by suicide at a later date. Suicide prevention interventions have proven to be highly effective and should be widely implemented.
In Denmark, conventional suicide prevention signage has contributed to the reduction of annual railway suicides rates from 45 cases in 2009 to just 20 in 2022, even though only a few signs where installed at some key train stations. Rail Message signage takes this method of prevenion to the next level of efficiency and dramatically reduces its costs.
Solution: magnetic signs directly on the rails
Rail Message is an innovative patented rail signage designed for suicide prevention, but can also be used for safety and technical markings.
Signs with a helpline number on railway stations is a proven method of suicide prevention, but they compete with the advertisement space for passenger attention, can often cause false calls and can degrade the esthetics of architecture.
Rail Message signs are designed to be mounted magnetically directly on the rails and that solves a lot of problems. These signs also allow precise targeting by showing the message only to the passengers who stand too close to the edge of the platform. Placing Rail Message signs on the first rail from the platform helps to reduce the faulse calls and makes them virtually invisible for the regular passengers. From the technical side the magnetic adhesion is tested to be more than sufficient.
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Rail Message co-inventor Dim Newman gave a speech about the new method of tackling deliberate accidents on railway tracks at international workshop under the auspices of the Danish Research Institute for Suicide Prevention (DRISP) at the University of Copenhagen.
Targeted exclusively at people at risk, the Rail Message innovative magnetic signage application was presented to a large scientific community. World class psychiatrists from around the globe have expressed their genuine interest and endorsement of the high potential of this new method of suicide prevention.
According to scientists the usage of signs with a specialised helpline phone numbers significantly reduces suicides on railways.
Feel free to contact Rail Message for more information and to request free samples. Join us in our life-saving mission of turning railways into more secure space. Choosing Rail Message is a strategic investment into a safe and healthy future.
Rail Message
c/o Brand Lane ApS, Dronninggårds Allé 2, 2840 Holte, Denmark
dim@railmessage.com (+45) 22 40 50 88