In an effort to improve safety at highway-rail grade crossings, the U.S. Department of Transportation (USDOT) recently published a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) that would require all states and the District of Columbia to implement crossing action plans.
Those plans would need to be developed and implemented within one year of the final rule’s effective date. The Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) would then review these plans and, upon finding them sufficient, would publish the plans online.
“Grade crossing collisions are the second leading cause of rail-related deaths in America, but nearly every one of them is preventable,” FRA Administrator Ronald Batory said. “The action plans provide states a tool to engage with federal and local partners, railroads, and rail safety advocates to identify high-risk crossings and develop strategies to save lives.”
U.S. Transportation Secretary Elaine Chao announced the third edition of the Highway-Rail Crossing Handbook, marking the first update to that rulebook in more than a decade. It tracks best practices and new safety standards for the 130,000 public rail and road junctures in use across the country, with a focus on the physical and operational improvements that could help enhance safety measures at these intersections.
“The Department is committed to supporting infrastructure improvements, new communications tools, and working to change driver behavior so that highway-rail grade crossings are safe environments for all transportation users,” Chao said.
All of this comes on the heels of the fourth annual USDOT safety campaign targeting such crossings: Stop. Trains Can’t. This year’s campaign focused on cities with the highest vehicle and train incidents in the past 10 years.
Comments on the proposed new rule will be accepted until Jan. 6, 2020.