The purpose of this paper is to examine the recent history of rail-highway accidents and to examine some of the steps taken to mitigate these incidents. The focus is on both national experiences in the United States and how the national experience relates to activities in the Chicago area. Specifically two items will be examined, (1) the efforts to decrease collisions at grade crossings in the Chicago Metropolitan area and (2) the experiences with vehicle arrest barriers (VABs) in moving toward high-speed train operations between Chicago and St. Louis. This paper has summarized two highway-rail crossing problems of great interest to the residents of northeastern Illinois. In one case changes inspired by FRA analysis recommend addressing gated crossing where locomotive horns are not routinely used. There is little local consensus that major changes are necessary at theses crossings. In the other case, the need to for effective devices at high-speed rail crossings is well recognized. Unfortunately the VAB deployment has not produced the desired results and may have implication to new technologies applied to quiet highway-rail crossings in the Chicago area and elsewhere. Desired result do not always occur no matter how well intentioned the effort. We concur with the substantial attention placed in the Chicago area on encouraging rail use by passengers and making it a safe experience for both highway and rail users. In these efforts there is always the question whether the use of scarce funds are best allocated for this purpose. The cost-benefit analysis for vehicle arrest barriers has shown that these devices would not be cost effective. Although a cost-benefit analysis was not presented on the use of locomotive horns or constructing more effective barriers than the gates currently in operation at rail crossings, the data in this report suggests that if the resources were available that there are many other areas where they may well be applied more effective.se decisions must be made on considerable work and sound analysis. This analysis is essential before the decisions to commit major resources are made. Fortunately, highway-rail collisions at gated crossings are declining and fatalities are relatively rare. But the infrequency of these events makes it a particularly difficult statistical problem and this opens the door to prospective differences in the interpretation of data. Our conclusion is that there is no compelling evidence in the Chicago area that would merit the allocation of scarce safety resources on installing advanced restraining systems at gated crossings where locomotive horns are not routinely used. For the covering abstract see ITRD E136183.
Samenvatting