Rail suicide: exonerate train drivers
If a suicidal person throws himself in front of a train, the train drivers affected often suffer for the rest of their lives. SBB now wants to strengthen prevention.
![When a train driver has witnessed a suicide, it means a heavy psychological burden. (Image: © SBB CFF FFS)](http://develop.safety-plus.ch/wp-content/uploads/2016/12/Schienensuizid-Lokfuehrer-entlasten_safety-plus.jpeg)
Rail suicides often take a heavy toll on the mental health of the train drivers involved. And these are not exactly rare: 140 people died in such an incident last year, and a further 90 survived the attempt - albeit often seriously injured. Some of the SBB employees who have had to witness this have to give up their jobs altogether, while others struggle with anxiety on every journey afterwards.
But it is not only the train drivers who are affected - in addition to the human suffering that a rail suicide causes for the victims, relatives, customers and employees, they also have a major impact on rail traffic.
How the SBB is involved in a Communiqué it wants to actively engage in prevention due to the development of rail suicides and social responsibility. The focus is on communication, raising employee awareness and examining further measures in the structural and technical area. At a national conference today, SBB worked closely with experts, the Federal Office of Public Health and other institutions to provide information on the subject of rail suicide, prevention and how best to deal with it.