DODGE CITY, Kan. — Burlington Northern Santa Fe Railroad officials and local law enforcement agencies are hoping to teach people about the dangers of railroad crossings and the need to follow the laws governing those crossings, the Dodge City Daily Globe reported.
Burlington Northern will be conducting its “Officer on the Train” program in Dodge City today in hopes of raising residents’ awareness of the danger of disobeying the laws and signs concerning railroad crossings.
From 1-3 p.m., Kansas Highway Patrol trooper will be riding the train as it passes through Dodge City and monitor each of the five railroad crossings within the city limits, said Randy Wells, field safety support coordinator for Burlington Northern. A Dodge City Police Department officer may join the KHP trooper during the ride.
If the trooper sees any violations of railroad-crossing laws — such as a driver stopping on the tracks or attempting to drive around the crossing arms — he will notify other law enforcement officers in mobile units. Violators could face fines of up to $250.
Wells said people don’t realize that a train traveling at 55 mph is moving 88 feet per second, and it takes a mile or more for a train moving at such speeds to come to a stop. Even if the train is going only 30 mph, it would take at least a quarter-mile for the train to stop.
The goal of the “Officer on the Train” program is to promote safety and knowledge of the laws concerning railroad crossings, not to collect fines for violations, he said.
“We’re trying to raise awareness, not cost people money,” he said. “It’s to raise awareness because every two hours — seven days a week, 24 hours a day — somebody’s injured or killed at a highway rail grade crossing and/or on railroad property in the United States. What’s important is we’re trying to save lives.”
He said there were no estimates on how many violations are observed during a typical “Officer on the Train” exercise, and it would be difficult to gauge how successful the program is in raising awareness of railroad-crossing safety issues.
The major railroads conduct similar safety programs, and Burlington Northern has a special team dedicated to the “Officer on a Train” program and other safety-related activities. The team focuses its efforts on critical railroad crossings throughout the team’s 26-state coverage area.
The “Officer on the Train” program is only one part of 22 different activities the Burlington Northern team does to promote awareness of railroad crossing safety issues.
A Union Pacific engineer launched an industry-wide railroad-crossing safety program, known as Operation Lifesaver, in 1972 to help reduce the number of people killed or injured in accidents involving railroad crossing, Wells said. That safety effort continues today, and the “Officer on a Train” program is part of it.
“Back then (in 1972) there were over 1,200 people killed and 12,000 people injured,” he said. “Today, the numbers we’re getting are — plus or minus — around 450 people killed (in accidents) and probably plus or minus 470 people killed trespassing and/or suicide, with almost 5,000 people injured.