Lorry Driver Escapes Driving Ban

19 April 2010, 09:57 | Updated: 21 April 2010, 15:03

A tanker driver, who drove through a level crossing in Cambridge moments before a train was due, has escaped a driving ban.

38 year old John McDonald, from Denton Burn in Newcastle, admitted failing to comply with a traffic signal and had three points put on his licence.

He was also fined £175 and ordered to pay £45 costs.

It's after McDonald ignored flashing warning lights and drove his 44 tonne sewage truck across the crossing at Foxton on the 12th December last year.

Click here to watch CCTV footage of the tanker driving through the crossing.

PC Tony Orton, from the British Transport Police, said: "McDonald’s actions were extremely reckless.

Had a train been closer to the crossing we could have been looking at far worse consequences. 

Drivers must realise that they are not simply risking their own lives when they ignore the warning lights - they are also risking the lives of those who are travelling on the trains. 

Working with Network Rail, officers will continue to carry out high-profile operations to educate drivers about level crossing safety.

However, if people do blatantly ignore the law we will have no hesitation in pursuing prosecutions in court."