Fatal Train Accident at Railroad Crossing Raises Questions
A fatal railroad collision between a car and a train near the U.S. 71-B in Arkansas has investigators wondering why active warning signs were not at the railroad crossing. The crossing, lacking flashing lights and hinged road-blocking arms, is a dangerous intersection that is, according to the department of transportation, unlikely to have warning signals installed in the near future.
According to the department of transportation, of the 2, 700 railroad crossings in Arkansas, 70 percent do not have active warnings. At such railroad crossings, the only warning may be the sound of the conductor blowing the train's whistle about 15-20 seconds before an intersection, which is a state law requirement.
Several aspects of an intersection are examined before a decision is made to install active warnings; the following are often considered:
1. Train Accident history
2. Site distance in relation to vegetation or new construction blocking visibility of the track.
3. Number of railroad crossings on the road
4. Number of trains that use the track daily
5. Speed of those trains
6. Amount of traffic that crosses those tracks
7. Type of vehicles that cross the tracks regularly
8. If the intersections is often crossed by school buses
9. If hazardous materials are usually transported
10. If it is a more frequently used ambulance route
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