A man has died when his car was hit by a train at a level crossing without barriers at Scheemda in the province of Groningen. The train driver escaped unhurt, public broadcaster NOS reports.

In January there was another accident at the crossing but in that instance no one died. In 2015 another person died on the same crossing when a train collided with a car.

Last July the Dutch Safety Board OVV slammed the ‘unacceptable’ way an average of 11 people are killed in accidents on railway level crossings every year. However, the fragmented approach and lack of focus at the infrastructure ministry are stalling efforts to improve safety at crossings, the OVV said.

The Netherlands is the only country within the EU where so many roads cross so many railways, the OVV said. ‘This is not a good combination.’

In a move to solve the problem, Dutch railway track operator ProRail has been experimenting with painting bright yellow boxes on the ground at level crossings which appear to make pedestrians and road users more aware of what they are doing and contributes to a feeling of safety.

The Scheemda level crossing was also on the list to be made safer, a spokesperson for ProRal said. ‘We were in talks with the local council to fix the problem,’ he told NOS.