| Railroad Safety
 Over the past 10 years, 844 children under the age of 16 were killed and 2,864 were injured at railroad crossings and on railroad property, such as tracks, yards,and equipment.
Twenty percent of the trespass fatalities are under age 21.
Many children believe they will hear an oncoming train or that a train will be able to stop in time; however, if a 150-car freight train is traveling 50 miles per hour, it will take over a mile to stop.
During 1998, 85 young people ages 6 through 20 were killed and another 98 were injured while trespassing on railroad property.
Every 115 minutes, either a person or vehicle is hit by a train.
People are 30 times more likely to die when involved in a collision with a train than when involved in a collision with another car, bus, or truck.
Nearly half of all collisions at railroad crossings occur where gates, lights or bells exits and are functioning properly.
Highway-rail crossing casualties for children under the age of 16 have declined significantly (by approximately 40 percent), from 201 in 1994 to 120 in 1998, while trespass casualties have also decreased by almost 30 percent, from 102 in 1994 to 72 in 1998.
|
