Videos: Only a split second from death after act of sheer madness

The moment-by-moment CCTV pictures show him spotting the danger after jumping over a level crossing barrier and leaping clear with a split second to spare, losing his right shoe in the process.

In another clip, the driver of a Vauxhall Corsa races through an open crossing, and a train misses the car by inches.

The images form part of a new Network Rail campaign against such law-breaking, which has reached a five-year high across Britain.

• Video 2: Motorist hits barrier at level crossing

• Video 3: Near miss at level crossing, part one

• Video 4: Near miss at level crossing, part two

In recent weeks, two people have died at level crossings in Scotland. An elderly man was hit by a train at the Moulinearn crossing near Pitlochry, Perthshire, on Saturday, and Robert Milloy, 18, was hit by a train at a crossing near his home at Gatehead, Ayrshire, last month.

In one of a series of film clips of incidents released by Network Rail to back its campaign, the man almost hit by a train is shown crossing just after another man had climbed over the barrier and walked across.

In the incident, at Rainham in Essex, the second man jumps over the barrier from among a group of people waiting to cross. He fails to look right until the train has virtually hit him.

Iain Coucher, Network Rail's chief executive, said: "The toughest consequence of breaking the law at a level crossing is to lose your life.

"Thankfully that doesn't happen very often, but every week we see people who ignore warning signs and lights, or drive round barriers at level crossings just to save a few minutes.

"This behaviour has the potential for massive damage, disruption and death."

Network Rail said there were 3,479 reported incidents last year, which included 15 deaths. In Scotland, there were 201 reported cases, the lowest for five years, but five vehicles were hit by trains – the highest number over the same period.

The firm called on judges and sheriffs in Scotland to "stamp down hard" on drivers jumping red lights and dodging barriers "to act as a clear deterrent".

Network Rail said crossing misuse caused delays last year totalling 55 days and costing some 1.8 million. It said 95 per cent of collisions at crossings were caused by misuse or error, such as drivers ignoring red signals, barriers and klaxons.

Across Britain, there were more than five near misses a week involving pedestrians and three a week involving drivers.

Ron McAulay, Network Rail's Scotland director, said: "Last year, five vehicles were struck at level crossings in Scotland, more than at any time since 2003."

Bob Crow, the general secretary of the Rail Maritime and Transport union, said: "Level crossings themselves are the Achilles heel of our network and they need to be phased out."

Three drivers a week risk rail-crossing disaster

MORE than three drivers a week are risking disaster by jumping red lights at level crossings in Scotland, new figures show.

A barrier-less crossing at Garve in the Highlands has been the most abused, with 58 drivers caught in the past year.

The figures obtained by The Scotsman show that the crossing at Cornton, between Stirling and Bridge of Allan, was second worst: 45 motorists drove through red lights.

They number among 168 such incidents in the year to yesterday. Eight crossings, including Garve and Cornton, have cameras that automatically detect red-light jumpers.

The previous year's total was 128, but this figure was not comparable, because not all drivers caught on camera were prosecuted until January last year. This was due to a funding dispute between British Transport Police and Network Rail, which was resolved after The Scotsman highlighted the issue.

The latest figures show 13 incidents at Insch in Aberdeenshire, which are likely to have been reported by train drivers and signallers, as there is no camera at the crossing.

Police said many of those caught by cameras were local residents.

Network Rail said the five vehicles which had been hit by trains last year included a Land Rover colliding with a passenger train at Kinbrace in Sutherland, and a potato lorry being hit by a snow-clearance train near Auchterarder in Perthshire. No-one was injured in any of the incidents.

The Health and Safety Executive has said level crossings present "the greatest potential for catastrophic risk on the railways".