To all appearances, Saturday's fatal collision between a freight train and a public bus was human error. The driver of the freight train lacked a rail transport licence, and a urine test showed narcotic traces in his system. The driver of the bus was charged with violating the traffic law by stopping on the railway crossing.
But society must not focus only on finding culprits, and the public must not be content only when culprits are put in jail. This newspaper has long held the opinion that accidents at railway crossings -- including the recent one on Saturday at the Asok-Phetchaburi crossing -- are the outcome of wilful ignorance by governments and responsible agencies that were fully aware of the risks but did nothing to improve safety at level crossings.
