Family relives train horror

The parents of a four-year-old Melbourne girl caught on security cameras as she fell under a train have spoken of their moment of terror.

CCTV pictures - revealed by Seven News - shows the terrifying moment Mackenna Lowman fell onto tracks as she boarded an Epping train at Southern Cross Station.

The little girl was pulled to safety by a brave passenger following a moment of panic on the platform.

Mackenna's mother, Jessica, told Seven News reporter Louise Milligan: "My heart just stopped. I didn’t know what had happened to her, and I was petrified that the train was going to go and take her with it."

Amazingly, little Mackenna escaped without major injury, bar a small cut on the back of her head, but the emotional scars are yet to heal.

"Getting her on a train now is not an easy task," Jessica said. "She just melts down and is absolutely hysterical."

The Lowmans are now pushing for a railway station safety campaign so that others do not have to endure the same ordeal.

They believe far more needs to be done to warn passengers, particularly parents, of how wide the gap is between the train and the platform.

"Warnings on the platforms of how big their gaps are would be a help," Jessica said, citing London’s ‘Mind the Gap’ campaign as inspiration.

Signs warning passengers of dangers on the platform can be found in most London Underground stations, but warnings are scarce in Melbourne.

Public Transport Minister Terry Mulder says it is the responsibility of passengers to stay alert and safe on train platforms.

He told Seven News: "You can put as much signage as you like but people need to understand that it is a dangerous environment right next to a train."

The Lowmans are warning other parents to exercise extreme caution.

"Just take your time and do it slowly," Jessica said. "Get them on one at a time and definitely help them on, don’t let them do it themselves."