On Thursday morning, an elderly man with a walker was hit by a tram at the Clinckhoeff shopping centre in IJsselstein near Utrecht.
Tragically, the collision resulted in the immediate death of the 92-year-old.
Not enough time
The accident occurred as the tram from Nieuwegein approached the stop at the Clinckhoeff shopping centre at around 9:45 AM on Thursday morning.
The tram driver heard screams from the nearby florist, who saw that a pedestrian was in the process of crossing the tram tracks.
The driver honked, then braked — but it was too late. The man fell under the tram and died on the spot.
Dodelijk ongeval met tram bij Clinckhoeff in IJsselstein – https://t.co/Balyh0DBv8 pic.twitter.com/ReEzftuDpN
— Het Kontakt – Zenderstreeknieuws (@HK_Zenderstreek) March 16, 2023
Unsafe tram crossing
According to AD, the tram stop near the shopping centre has two crossings: One for cars and one for pedestrians. So far, so good — except for the fact that only one of them has barriers, warning lights, and a bell that indicates when a tram is nearing.
And yup, you guessed it, that’s for the cars.
Pedestrians, on the other hand, only have red fences that they have to zigzag through — meant to warn them of possible danger.
Wat afschuwelijk. Een man van 92 jaar met zijn rollator…WAAROM ZIJN DIT SOORT TRAMOVERGANGEN NIET BEVEILIGD? Dit is NIET het eerste dodelijke ongeval met de tram Nieuwegein/IJsselstein/Utrecht! @Gem_Nieuwegein
— Astrid van Helden (@MasterYogiKali) March 16, 2023
Translation: How awful. A 92-year-old man with his walker…WHY ARE THESE TRAM CROSSINGS NOT SECURED? This is NOT the first fatal accident involving the Nieuwegein/IJsselstein/Utrecht tram!
Trams on strike
A resident of the area tells AD that trams had not been running in the days leading up to the incident due to the ongoing regional public transport strikes. “Then you don’t have to look around,” they explain.
READ MORE | Body of missing 29-year-old woman found in Amsterdam
It is unclear what exactly caused the incident — whether the man didn’t look, got stuck with his walker, or simply didn’t register the approaching tram.
It took emergency services several hours to clear the tracks, and traffic didn’t start up again until 2 PM.
Warning campaign
The province of Utrecht, which owns the trams and rails in this area, launched a campaign earlier this year to warn pedestrians of the dangers of crossing the street at tram crossings.
It takes a tram about 40 metres to brake, so a driver cannot stop easily if someone is in front of the tram.
Want the latest Dutch news to come zooming through the internet to your inbox? Dat kan! Subscribe to DutchReview’s weekly roundup 📮