Have you ever gone through a railroad crossing that was flashing?

Question

I have never been that impatient to wait for the train to go by. But apparently a trucker of all vehicles went through one in my neighborhood yesterday. Guess that guy will be looking for a new job and a lawyer. Here is a link to story in interested.

http://www.nbc10.com/news/14270610/detail.html?dl=headlineclick

Answer 1

thanks for the story. that is interesting.  

i know where i live out here.. there are no guard rails or anything and it is woods on both sides.. the flashing light thing went out and i was almost hammered by a train a few years ago.. i am always so scared to cross that crossing that i stop and look.. i am glad i did cause there was a train and i had no warning it was coming around the corner. i trusted my instinct and looked very carefully.. it is easy to drive that on a regular basis and then start being sloppy about crossing.. not everyday that train runs through there.. rarely see one... we have been trying to fight the city to put up those rails for the crossing and they have yet to do it.

Answer 2

i have made up a safety poem about this very thing

I call it USE YOUR BRAIN AROUND A TRAIN

when you see a train remember to USE YOUR BRAIN WHEN SEE A TRAIN' IF YOU TRIED TO BEAT THE TRAIN YOU WILL LOSE YOUR BRAIN AN D IT WILL BE  A PAIN

TO REMOVE YOUR REMAINS FROM THE TRAIN

SO REMEMBER TO USE YOUR BRAIN WHEN YOU SEE A TRAIN

Answer 3

Several times, but I was on foot and the crossing in question has a member of rail staff who will wave pedestrians across if there is time for them to safely cross or if the train is stationary in the platforms. Any sign of moving trains and he will instruct you to wait by the gates.

This is all officially sanctioned becuase of the length of time the crossing is down, the fact that 95% of trains stop at the station and the low speed limits through the station (30mph IIRC)  If there is no attendent then the Pedestrian gates are locked and you have to wait as normal.

Answer 4

Yup, I have. I was once driving stoned in an unfamiliar city and I didn't realize that the lights were flashing until I got into the intersection. Luckily the train was far away and I made it through no problem.

Answer 5

Yeah I have but it was for s***s and giggles and it had just started flashing. I would never go through one if I didn't know how long it was flashing for or if the gate was down. That's just suicide.

Answer 6

Yes, but as a train passenger.

In college, I wrote obituaries for the city desk of a major county-wide newspaper, and I wrote far too many for people who tried to pull this stunt. The results are grizzly. And it happens more often than you could imagine.

Answer 7

I'm not that stupid. So many people do this and don;t know just how lucky they are if they make it across. My life is precious. I would rather wait a few minutes for the train than end up dead.

Answer 8

Yes, once.  I looked down the tracks when my car was in the middle of the crossing and was horrified to see the train was only a few feet away!  I was sure glad the car didn't stall when I floored it!  What made it all worse was my Mom was in the car with me!!  Boy, did I get a scolding afterwards!  NEVER again!

Answer 9

I am curious to know what kind of cross section of the population visits Y!A, as everyone here always seems to know better than to ignore crossing protection.  I am on the opposite end of the scale from Rango, however, as I can scarcely remember a trip where at least one person didn't go around the gates.

Even so, I am a lucky one.  Though I have struck vehicles and one pedestrian, there were no fatalities in my career.  But, when taken as a statistical average, in a 30 year career, train crews can expect to experience three fatalities at grade crossings.

Another question posted here today is in regard to how suicides affect train crews.  I don't know, but I imagine it cannot match the following horror:

Graduation night, 1973.  A "pleasure van," as they were called, with eight teenagers inside went around the crossing gates in Red Bluff, California.  The vehicle was hit and all eight lost their lives.

The brakeman, a man who hired out with me and a very close friend, went back after the collision to check for survivors.  A young girl lay against a white picket fence, a piece of metal driven into her skull.  He cradled her bloody head in his lap until she died.

He was a changed man after that, and almost quit.

For the offender, the gruesome spectacle ends quickly and fearfully.  For the train crew, the scenario plays in the mind over and over and over.  The sound of the collision, that unfolds in slow motion as time is compressed in stressful situations, and, worst of all, the look of sheer terror on someone's face the moment they realize their date with eternity is but a heartbeat away;  that stays with you.

In California, the penalty from going around crossing gates is second only to that of drunk driving, if caught.  We're talking major $$$ and jail time.  Even so, people do it evey day.

Although it sounds like a broken record, I'll keep on saying it.  Crossing protection is not fail-safe.  Yes, there is battery backup to guard against power failure, but there are other conditions that can render crossing gates inoperative.

So, hit the pause button on the CD player and turn your head.  You just might live, without giving a train crew member a lifetime of heartache and bad dreams.

Answer 10

Judging time distance and speed is far more important than some sill light. my only feelings of remorse is that Charles Darwin did not rear his ugly head at the truck driver. Truck drivers are suppose to be professional and its not like Mr. Joe Truck Driver is going to win the Nobel Prize.

Answer 11

Yep, I do it every day.

But I am the reason the lights flash and I am on the tracks.

Drivers going through the gates and lights doesnt happen every day but it happens far too often.

There are lots of close calls, we are asked to turn in license numbers but it is nearly impossible to do.

I have literally looked in the window of a car going across in front of me and no one was even looking, I have seen the passenger look my way and finally see the train and start screaming. At that point I can only say please God dont let the driver panic and slam on the brakes.

Experienced railroaders tell beginners to NEVER look at the very last second of a crash, divert your eyes, not matter what.

That last scene is somethign you will never get out of your mind.

Being a railroad engineer is a very stressful job and this is the most stressful part of it.

If you have ever had to step out the front of an engine and see all the hand rails covered in antifreeze and transmission fluid and you are shaking and praying it is not blood, you understand what I am talking about.