TRAINS have trundled through farms since the original rail revolution scattered tracks across rural England. The farmer and the railway usually find a way to rub along together, and that was the case for generations of the Barnitt family.

But times change. Today Richard Barnitt and Railtrack are at loggerheads over the York to Harrogate railway line which dissects his land.

For years, Mr Barnitt has taken his tractor across the line to work on an 18-acre field where he keeps cattle. Today, this path is blocked by barbed wire fencing, installed by Railtrack.

This is a clash between tradition and modernity, private need and public responsibility.

Mr Barnitt says he will lose £36,000 if he cannot tend his land. This would be a bitter blow for a farmer who has survived the ravages of BSE, floods and foot and mouth.

The York to Harrogate line is not the busiest of lines, and there is no suggestion that he has ever been involved in an accident or a near miss. Farmers have been long been allowed to cross railway tracks across Britain. So why, Mr Barnitt is left asking, change things now?

The simple answer is Great Heck. The rail crash has focused attention on the dangers of vehicles on railway lines.

Railtrack had to act even before that disaster. About 70 road vehicles become stuck on the tracks each year, causing five deaths in ten years.

So Railtrack ended Mr Barnitt's right to drive over the former level crossing in a land deal two years ago. Most likely it has chosen to enforce this clause in the light of Great Heck.

It would be an expensive shame if this dispute wound up in a legal battle. Both Mr Barnitt and Railtrack should adopt a more conciliatory tone and work together to improve the only safe access - the underpass.

Updated: 10:19 Thursday, April 11, 2002