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U.S. Department of Transportation U.S. Department of Transportation Icon United States Department of Transportation United States Department of Transportation

FRA Releases List of Railroad Crossings with Most Incidents over Last Decade

Document Series
Press Releases
Press Release Number
FRA 12-16
Contact Name
FRA Public Affairs
Contact Phone Number
202-493-6024
Subject Highway-Rail Grade Crossings
Keywords
Railroad, crossing, safety, highway-rail, grade, funding
Thursday, April 21, 2016

Part of continued, increased focus on reducing fatalities at railroad crossings

 

Administrator urges increased cooperation, highlights funding opportunities, offers FRA expertise

WASHINGTON — As the next step in its ongoing efforts to increase safety at railroad crossings, the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) today released a list of railroad crossings in the United States where multiple incidents have occurred in recent years. The list includes 15 crossings where 10 or more incidents have occurred during the last decade. 

The list follows FRA Administrator Sarah E. Feinberg’s recent letter to state DOT secretaries. The letter urged increased cooperation to improve safety at crossings and provided a detailed round up of federal financial resources and FRA expertise available to states.

“Knowing where repeat injuries and fatalities occur helps states focus their time and resources on areas where they can have an impact,” said U.S. Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx.  “Preventing incidents and fatalities at railroad crossings is one of the Department’s top priorities, and I urge states to work with FRA to achieve this life-saving goal.”

FRA tracks safety data at the nation’s more than 200,000 railroad crossings. FRA data show there are 15 crossings across the United States where at least 10 incidents occurred over the last decade.  While fatalities have not occurred at all 15crossings, the potential for injuries and loss of life could be significant due to repeated incidents. The list of crossings is below.

Many of the 15 crossings are at busy, multiple lane intersections in neighborhoods with significant truck traffic or have tracks crossings roadways on a diagonal. Many crossings close to a traffic intersection also have their warning systems interconnected to traffic lights. If sequenced and working correctly, these interconnected systems can help prevent vehicles from stopping over railroad tracks where there is limited roadway between the tracks and the nearby intersection. In February, FRA reissued a safety advisory and sent a letter that called on states to partner with railroads to verify that these interconnected systems account for current highway traffic patterns. Fifty percent of the crossings FRA released today have interconnected systems.

“I urge our state partners to join FRA in taking additional actions to improve crossing safety. I know that, together, we can do more to save lives,” Administrator Sarah E. Feinberg wrote to states in a letter.  “FRA is ready and willing to help our partners in any way we can.”

 

Last year, FRA launched a new, comprehensive campaign to reverse the uptick in fatalities at railroad crossings. The campaign includes partnering with tech companies to use FRA data that pinpoints the country’s approximately 200,000 railroad crossings and 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. 

 

In March, FRA launched a redesigned website to serve as a one-stop shop to help drivers, pedestrians, and law enforcement stay safe around railroad crossings.  The launch follows the agency’s award of nearly $10 million in grants for nine projects in eight states to upgrade and increase the safety of railroad crossings along energy routes.

Crossings with 10 or more incidents during the last decade

Click on the crossing ID for a Google Street View of the crossing.
Crossing IDCITYSTATETOTAL INCIDENTSTOTAL FATALITIESTOTAL INJURIES
025617C Phoenix Arizona 24 0 2
025425K Phoenix Arizona 21 0 4
025422P Glendale Arizona 19 0 3
330578C Ashdown Arkansas 16 4 4
025430G Phoenix Arizona 15 0 4
263164S Elmwood Park New Jersey 14 1 4
879204S Muncie Indiana 14 0 3
303227G Baton Rouge Louisiana 13 0 0
351290D Evergreen Alabama 13 5 1
340137G Pascagoula Mississippi 12 0 7
524223P Cleveland Ohio 12 0 1
025590V Glendale Arizona 10 0 1
637698V Waycross Georgia 10 0 1
663401F Memphis Tennessee 10 2 4
755627X Houston Texas 12 0 5

DOT is committed to ensuring that information is available in appropriate alternative formats to meet the requirements of persons who have a disability. If you require an alternative version of files provided on this page, please contact FRADevOps@dot.gov.