Carl Issitt

Said the following about Martin Tollitt:

“QTS site manager, Martin Tollitt, was parked up outside at Leyland train station in Lancashire, waiting for his nightshift to start, around 1am. Groups of people were milling around, using the overbridge to exit the station and into the night. He noticed a young woman enter the platform as if there to wait for a train and then watched as she began to pace up and down. He tried to get her attention by flashing his lights, as there were no trains due to arrive now till around 9am. He got out of his car and approached the young woman. Upon questioning, she revealed that she was waiting on a train to jump in front of it. As Martin informed her there would be no train until 9am, she responded that she would wait till then.

As she was in no immediate danger, Martin left the woman to call the police. They arrived and sat with her till daybreak, eventually escorting here away in an ambulance.

However, this is not the first incident Martin has had with a vulnerable person on the railway.

In 2018, he saved the life of a young female at Ashton-Under-Lyne train station. While inspecting a job, he came across a woman who had climbed off the platform and was standing in the four foot. With other passengers not reacting to the situation, Martin approached the side of the platform to speak with her. Realising her intention, and upon hearing the train approaching the platform, he quickly signalled to the driver to perform an emergency stop.

On both occasions, his actions saved not only this young woman, but her family from the heartbreak of losing a loved one. We are extremely proud of Martin for looking out for others & for helping to avoid what could have been two very sad situations.“