Summary

Goathland station on the preserved North Yorkshire Moors Railway lies towards the top of a long steep climb. Most of the railway line is single track, but a passing loop is provided at Goathland to allow trains to pass each other. If a runaway vehicle were to enter the single line section, it would be impossible to stop it before it either derailed itself at high speed, or collided with a train already in the section. If the runaway vehicle was a passenger vehicle, the resulting accident would almost certainly be fatal. Therefore, at the north end of Goathland station, both catch points and trap points are employed as safety measures.

A set of trap points are found on the side of the passing loop where traffic normally travels up the gradient. These are used to derail any vehicle starting to run away through the station at low speed. Because traffic at that part of the track is usually in one direction only, the trap points at Goathland are held in a position to derail any vehicle moving in the wrong (downhill) direction. The wheels of a vehicle passing over the trap points in the allowed direction would push the points blades into the correct position to allow safe passage. Once the wheels have passed, the trap points are forced back into the derailing position by springs. A lever is provided near the trap points to hold them in a safe position for a traffic movement in the opposite direction to normal.

A set of catch points and a sand drag are positioned at the exit of the passing loop. These are used to protect the single main line from any vehicle that may pass the starting signal at danger. When the signal is set to "stop", the trap points are set to direct vehicles into the sand drag. Interlocking is used to make sure that the starting signal cannot be set to allow a train to pass until the trap points have been set to safely direct the train onto the main line.

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