The duty of a rail authority to do everything reasonably necessary to secure the safety of persons using a level crossing, as stated in South Australian Railways Commissioner v Thomas, also governs the determination of contributory negligence claims against the rail authority. A train driver is not negligent in failing to brake earlier where the difference between the speed of a slowly approaching vehicle and the deceleration profile of that vehicle stopping would be virtually imperceptible from the train driver's position. Expert evidence challenging the reasonableness of repair costs must be supported by primary source material establishing the factual substratum for the expert's analysis; unproved assumptions are insufficient.
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