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Appeals court sides with railroad in fatal grade crossing accident
In the past decade in Michigan on the Grand Trunk Western lines of the CN, Signs and signals with flashing lights and arms have been installed at every almost every grade crossing. Only a few access roads around Indian Lake have remained without the lighted crossings. That has lowered the collision rate and risk.
In the past decade in Michigan on the Grand Trunk Western lines of the CN, Signs and signals with flashing lights and arms have been installed at every almost every grade crossing. Only a few access roads around Indian Lake have remained without the lighted crossings. That has lowered the collision rate and risk.
A crossbuck means to yield, not to stop. Placing stop signs at all unmarked crossings is extraneous and unnecessary.
63 mph is too fast for a rural road. The lack of braking suggests impaired driving.
About time!
SCORE
Train = 1
Truck = 0
SCORE
Train = 1
Truck = 0
Unfortunately, the solution would be to remove the lower traffic RR crossings if it comes to having expensive devices to limit liability.
Any indication of an alcohol or drug test done on the pickup driver?
Unfortunately, the solution would be to remove the lower traffic RR crossings if it comes to having expensive devices to limit liability.
Any indication of an alcohol or drug test done on the pickup driver?
I want to add another likely scenario. This person could have been texting and driving (although IDK about in 2008 as it wasn’t AS prevalent), but either way the incident was obviously easily preventable. You don’t even have to stop when you come up to a rail crossing just as long as you get a good look in each direction (maybe stopping if the view isn’t good) before you cross. It’s crucial to look & listen though!
Based on this argument all stop signs should be replaced with traffic lights. Good call.
Whenever a car or truck “argues” with a train, THE TRAIN ALWAYS WINS, but what else is new? One good slogan for grade crossing safety would be “Is trying to avoid that wait really worth your life?”
I would hope that this was only an accident. Suicides are tough. Been there, done that twice in the past 24 years as a locomotive engineer. The first one really hurt as his older brothers are friends of mine. Be that as may, life goes on.
First, my prayers are with the family.
Second, I think the state DOT, not the railroad, decides where warning devices are placed. Someone can correct me if I am wrong on this.
Third, it is hard to tell what happened, at least from the information in this article. 63 mph, though over the speed limit, would not be that unusual on a paved country road in Iowa. They are a lot straighter than in Maine and generally in good condition. Speed itself doesn’t indicate impairment.
Again, sad that someone had lost there life. If train frequency is only 1 or 2 a day, you have a tendency to get complacent that no train is approaching. The old safety slogan: familiarity leads to complaceny which leads to injury. Everyone should always be careful around tracks. Look and listen has been around a long time.
STOP, LOOK and LISTEN…not just a saying, your life depends on it!
While it’s sad someone lost their life, I’m glad common sense won the day here.
The court’s ruling is correct but it still shows that people think that they can beat a train (NOT!) and the Media and Legal Professions in general are quick to blame the Railroad. It is sad and it reminds me that the 42nd anniversary of the Penn Central / School Bus Collision in Congers, NY is near. Very sad indeed.
Our rural road, in Coxheath, NS had an inordinate number of train vs. vehicle accidents. They put as series of 90-degree turns in the road (right-left-crossing-left-right, heading southbound). Collisions ceased. They took the dog-legs out when CN installed crossing protection devices (wig-wags, of all things!). Trains, out of Sydney, were only doing 30 mph at that point, but the dog-legs increased visibility of trains coming around a curve and slowed traffic.