Tag Archive: railroad crossing safety

Pay Attention To RR Crossing Warning Signs!

March 8, 2017

All too often, drivers either ignore railroad crossing warning signs or assume the warning doesn’t apply to them. Yesterday, four people lost their lives and seven people were critically injured after a bus that was stuck on railroad tracks was hit by a train.

This wasn’t the first crash involving a stuck vehicle and a train at that railroad crossing. Just two weeks ago, a Pepsi delivery truck became stuck at the same crossing but, fortunately, no one was injured in that crash.

Many railroad grades have steep sides that make it dangerous for vehicles such as semi-trailers and buses that have very little ground clearance. Even some cars that have been modified can become stuck at these crossings.

One of the mistakes made in this instance was that the bus driver failed to immediately evacuate the bus as soon as he became stuck. Instead, a few people got off but most remained onboard while the driver tried to move his bus off the tracks. Had the bus been evacuated and the people moved far away from the tracks, the loss of life and injuries could have been minimized.

It’s important to remember that a fully loaded freight train carrying a lot of weight can take up to a mile before it can be brought to a complete stop. When approaching railroad crossings, look at and pay attention to all of the warning signs. If you think your vehicle may not make it across, turn back and look for another nearby crossing.

For more information visit: 4 dead after train, bus collide in Biloxi, Mississippi

Google navigation system to alert of railroad crossings

Google Navigation System To Alert Drivers Of Railroad Crossings

June 29, 2015

The Google navigation system will soon alert drivers of all railroad grade crossings in their path. According to news reports, Google and the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) will announce a partnership to upgrade the Google navigation system so that drivers using the navigation system will be alerted to all railroad crossings on their chosen route.

Railroad crossing incidents have steadily increased over the past three years. FRA officials aren’t sure why the number of crossing incidents are on the rise but it’s hoped that the new partnership with Google will help to reduce those numbers.

No date has been given for when the data will be available on the Google navigation system but Google executives say the project will be given a top priority.

The FRA has also reached out to Apple, MapQuest, TomTom and Garmin to include railroad crossing alerts on their navigation systems.

According to FRA data, between January and March of this year, there have been 531 crashes at railroad crossings in the US. Over the last three years, 732 people were killed at railroad crossings and 2,791 were injured in a total of 6,369 railroad crossing incidents. Thirty of those railroad crossing deaths occurred in Florida.

Many of those railroad crossing crashes occurred due to either driver inattention or driver impatience. Too many drivers try to beat trains at railroad crossings with disastrous results.

In Jacksonville, FL alone, over the past month, one car was cut in half by a train when the driver ignored railroad crossing arms and signals and tried to beat a train across the tracks. Luckily no one was killed but four people, including a pregnant passenger were injured.

In another Duval County incident this past weekend, one train was stopped at a crossing and the driver apparently didn’t see another train approaching on the other track when he drove around the downed crossing arms. One person was killed and another critically injured in that crash.

Because they’re so large, trains appear to be going slower than they actually are. Regardless of their speed, the massive weight of railroad locomotives can do a tremendous amount of damage. The weight of a train also means that it takes a very long time for a train to be brought to a stop. For freight trains, it can take up to a mile to bring the train to a full stop.