(The following story by Jona Ison appeared on the Newark Advocate website on June 10, 2010.)
CHILLICOTHE, Ohio — Great weather and no school lead to people enjoying the outdoors, but several Ohio agencies are advising residents not to do so near railroad tracks.
In 2009, Ohio ranked fourth in the nation for the number of pedestrians killed in train accidents. More than 5,000 people trespassing onto private railway property have been killed in railway accidents during the past decade.
While the state ranked eighth in railway collisions in 2009, Licking County is one of five counties that have reported no accidental collisions between 2001 and 2009.
“The biggest thing most people don’t know or understand is it’s private property, not public property. …This is one of the concepts we want to get across,” said Shel Senek, Ohio Operation Lifesaver coordinator.
Pedestrian fatalities often occur when people use the tracks as a shortcut, to hunt or fish or to walk pets or a bicycle, he added. If caught, trespassers could receive fines of up to $250 and a minimum of 30 days in jail.
Ohio Operation Lifesaver, in partnership with Norfolk Southern, operated a train enforcement workshop on Wednesday in the Chillicothe area. A passenger train carried law enforcement, first responders and bus drivers from Portsmouth to Rickenbacker Airport so they could see firsthand violations taking place along the route — which were reported to law enforcement standing by the route — and to provide safety information.
Operation Lifesaver is a nonprofit organization that receives funding via state and federal grants, private donations and from the railway industry to provide safety education. The program has more than 200 volunteer presenters across the state providing free safety sessions for schools, civic groups and other agencies. Operation Lifesaver also has free four-hour and eight-hour training workshops tailored for law enforcement or first responders.
At least twice a year, Operation Lifesaver and Norfolk Southern offer an enforcement train opportunity. Next week, another will run in the Akron-Canton area.
Senek explained they wanted to target the central and southeastern part of the state this year because rail traffic is expected to increase this fall. Norfolk Southern has been working on a Heartland Corridor project to expedite the transportation of double-stacked containerized freight.
The project, expected to be completed by late September, will reduce current travel patterns between the east coast and Midwest by about 200 miles. The Heartland Corridor goes across Virginia, through southern West Virginia and north through Columbus.
“Once the tunnels (for the project) are completed, this track is going to be running huge trains and more of them,” Senek said. “That’s why we want to spread the safety (tips) around.”