The Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) on March 17, 2016 launched a redesigned website described as “a one-stop shop to help drivers, pedestrians, and law enforcement stay safe around the nation’s more than 200,000 railroad crossings and 140,000 miles of track.” Railroad Crossing Safety & Trespass Prevention is “part of the agency’s ongoing campaign to reduce fatalities at railroad crossings and tracks to zero by building partnerships that increase education, step up enforcement and leverage engineering.”
FRA data “show that 96% of rail-related fatalities, most of which are preventable, are the result of incidents at railroad crossings and by trespassers,” the agency said. “That’s why the new FRA portal has more interactive features with downloadable fact sheets on safety and a resource library that is easy to navigate. The site makes accessing information about railroad crossing safety and trespass prevention more streamlined, with a focus on education.”
Last year, FRA launched a campaign to reverse the “uptick” crossing fatalities. The campaign includes partnering with Google and other tech companies to use FRA data that pinpoints the country’s approximately 200,000 railroad crossings to add crossing alerts to map applications. FRA has also worked with local law enforcement to increase enforcement around railroad crossings. In 2015, 244 individuals died at railroad crossings, down from 264 in 2014.
Last month, the FRA awarded nearly $10 million in grants for nine projects in eight states to upgrade and increase the safety of railroad crossings along routes where energy products (crude oil, ethanol) are hauled. In addition, FRA Administrator Sarah E. Feinberg highlighted the importance of partnerships between the states and railroads in her letter to state DOTs urging them to conduct inspections with railroads on traffic lights connected to railroad crossings. Furthermore, funds available to states through the Federal Highway Administration’s Section 130 Program, which provides funds for the elimination of hazards at railway-highway crossings, will increase to $350 million from $220 million in 2016.