LAFAYETTE, Ind. — It could be decades before all of Indiana’s passive road/rail crossings receive automated signals, leaving driver education as the most realistic alternative, the Journal and Courier reports.
Operation Lifesaver, a national rail safety group with chapters in each state, tries to spread its message of “Look, Listen, Live” wherever possible.
Indiana coordinator Tom Kinser said he and about 100 volunteers across the state make safety presentations to schools and civic groups when requested. They also try to set up booths or disseminate information at as many county fairs as possible.
For instance, presenters teach that a moving train coming at you from a distance appears to be traveling slower than it actually is.
But the Indiana group has been less successful in recent years at drawing state funding. Its annual programming budget of just $20,000, which comes from railroads, doesn’t go very far, Kinser noted.
“Because of our lack of funding, we do have limitations as far as education,” Kinser said. “It seems to be the one area that no one wants to fund.”
Kinser said television and radio stations in Indianapolis, Fort Wayne and South Bend sometimes air public service announcements promoting crossing safety. The Indiana Bureau of Motor Vehicles sometimes agrees to show safety videos in license branch lobbies.
Declining numbers of fatalities at crossings last year indicate the efforts have had an impact, Kinser said.
“But it’s not at the level I’d like it to be at, to be honest,” he said of public awareness.
Local driver education instructors said they stress road/rail crossing safety.
George Newell, a Jefferson High School guidance counselor who has been teaching driver’s education for 37 years, said he tries to incorporate passive crossings into his driving lessons.
“I tell the kids that even if they’ve got automated flashers and gates, they have to slow down, come to a complete stop, and if they’re playing the radio, turn it down, proceed with caution and look both ways,” Newell said.