Open season On Pedestrians

[John Bobinyec]

Yesterday train 75 (Piedmont) hit and killed someone on the tracks in Durham, NC. Is it my imagination or is this becoming an epidemic? Back in the early 70's, I was working as a towerman on the Erie Lackawanna in northern New Jersey. We ran a bunch of trains, but pedestrian strikes were extremely rare.

So I'm wondering if this is:

• a Southern phenomenon
• a fallout of increased earphone usage
• a downward trend in the general intelligence of the population at large
• increased suicide rates
• same incident rates but since the population is increasing, more pedestrian strikes result

jb

 

[AmtrakBlue]

• More access to media coverage

 

[VentureForth]

Yesterday train 75 (Piedmont) hit and killed someone on the tracks in Durham, NC. Is it my imagination or is this becoming an epidemic? Back in the early 70's, I was working as a towerman on the Erie Lackawanna in northern New Jersey. We ran a bunch of trains, but pedestrian strikes were extremely rare.

So I'm wondering if this is:

• a Southern phenomenon
• a fallout of increased earphone usage
• a downward trend in the general intelligence of the population at large
• increased suicide rates
• same incident rates but since the population is increasing, more pedestrian strikes result

jb

Well, I don't think that the first bullet is accurate at all. There was an incident in Northern Illinois last week... I don't see any particular geographic inference. Except perhaps things are a bit less in the NEC because much of it is fenced and protected, but some folks even up there go to extra efforts to get hit by a train...

 

[AmtrakBlue]

Yesterday train 75 (Piedmont) hit and killed someone on the tracks in Durham, NC. Is it my imagination or is this becoming an epidemic? Back in the early 70's, I was working as a towerman on the Erie Lackawanna in northern New Jersey. We ran a bunch of trains, but pedestrian strikes were extremely rare.

So I'm wondering if this is:

• a Southern phenomenon
• a fallout of increased earphone usage
• a downward trend in the general intelligence of the population at large
• increased suicide rates
• same incident rates but since the population is increasing, more pedestrian strikes result

jb

Well, I don't think that the first bullet is accurate at all. There was an incident in Northern Illinois last week... I don't see any particular geographic inference. Except perhaps things are a bit less in the NEC because much of it is fenced and protected, but some folks even up there go to extra efforts to get hit by a train...

Yeah, the NEC is fenced in a lot of areas, but people still manage to get onto the tracks. We had two recent one's between WIL and PHL...or maybe 3?

 

[the_traveler]

Yeah, it's not geographically limited - it's all over the country. The real answer is all the above - and more!

 

[jis]

NEC usually has over 100 trespasser incidents every year usually leading to a mess of various scales.

 

[Ryan]

• More access to media coverage

This.

 

[afigg]

Yeah, the NEC is fenced in a lot of areas, but people still manage to get onto the tracks. We had two recent one's between WIL and PHL...or maybe 3?

There have been a number of fatal trespasser and grade crossing incidents involving Amtrak in the past several weeks. On the NEC, a NE Regional hit a man at the Fairfield CT train station on Saturday. Short local news report on the fatality. Trainorders usually has posts on these incidents and there have been several fatalities in CA, the one in IL, the driver of an SUV was killed at a private road crossing in a collision with the EB in Washington state, and so on.

There is no geographical cluster to this. Just more people walking on the tracks or crossing the tracks where or when they should not. The total number of grade crossing collisions has declined significantly over the past 3 decades, but trespasser / pedestrian fatalities have not seen much of a sustained decline in numbers.

 

[John Bobinyec]

• More access to media coverage

That contributes to the perception that these type of incidents are happening nationwide. I'm talking about a local phenomenon just here in N. Carolina. I follow the progress of the Piedmont trains closely. My awareness isn't a result of heightened media coverage with them.

jb

 

[andersone]

I reiterate,,,

the train always wins

some folks just can't assimilate that

 

[jis]

I reiterate,,,

the train always wins

Except in those rare occasions when you park your SUV with yourself inside within the track gauge by a grade crossing to try to commit suicide and then change your mind and run away and leave the SUV in place to derail a train which then goes and hits a couple of other trains on adjacent tracks.

 

[Paul CHI]

I've lived in Chicago for 24 years. This is not a scientific study, but my impression is that trains (including the EL) kill an average of 1 person per month here. Drunk, oblivious, suicide, beat the train, didn't check opposite direction being the usual causes. But compared with traffic and crime deaths here (multiple per day), it's nothing like an epidemic. There's enough train traffic here that people seldom get caught on bridges.

 

[Bob Dylan]

As was said, it happens everywhere with certain areas well known for suicides by Train ( Northern California/Bay Area) and Train/ Vehicle Accidents!( the South leads due to the thousands of unmarked grade crossings)! You'd think that so called " Professionals", ie Truck Drivers,would know better but No!!!

But Betty did have a point about media exposure, it seems that the more it happens in whatever area, the incidents increase, you'd think people would be more aware of the danger of crossing tracks but unfortunately the lemmings, for whatever reason, seem to rush to duplicate no win situations again and again!

 

[Ispolkom]

I'm talking about a local phenomenon just here in N. Carolina.

The average number of fatalities in NC in 1995-2000 was 18. Last year it was 19. I'd say NC is like the rest of the US where tresspasser fatalities haven't budged in years.

 

[neroden]

Two things:

(1) as a method of committing suicide, walking in front of a train seems to remain popular

(2) in areas which have *very few trains*, many people seem to have completely forgotten the rules of safety around train tracks. This doesn't seem to happen as much in areas with lots of fast trains. You always seem to get a rash of pedestrian strikes just after a line has been upgraded. This is probably exacerbated by increased "earbud" usage.

 

[fairviewroad]

I reiterate,,,

the train always wins

some folks just can't assimilate that

Sorry, but this simply isn't the case, at least not without a major modifier..namely, the train

always wins when the train strikes the pedestrian.

Pedestrians successfully attempt unwise or illegal crossings of railroad tracks every hour of every day

in this country. In fact, you might argue that one reason why there are so many pedestrian deaths is

precisely because most railroad trespassers don't get killed. People think "it won't happen to me" and

in most cases, they are correct. The incorrect people are the ones who lose.

 

[gmushial]

• More access to media coverage

But JB worked as a towerman at the time... one would think that he would have been privy to such information, or even required to know so as to do his job... maybe not... but suspect in his case media coverage isn't the answer... again, maybe not.

 

[gmushial]

At least here (far northern Calif), my impression is: 1) an increased suicide rate, probably tied to the local economy (and only recovering for the upper quintile); and, 2) distraction, eg, earbuds installed and volume cranked up - had several over the last couple years where the body was pretty mangled, but the iPod was still cranking away.

 

[PRR 60]

Even though there is a perception that fatalities are way up, it is not really the case. The number has held pretty steady over the years.

Rail - Trespasser Fatalities

1978 - 403 (US population 223 million)

1983 - 400

1988 - 448

1993 - 523

1998 - 536

2003 - 498

2008 - 457 (US population 304 million)

2013 - 447

FRA - Office of Safety Analysis

 

[fillyjonk]

There have been a few "pedestrian" (really: people on the tracks because the collisions seem to happen in areas away from sidewalks) fatalities with freights here. In at least one case the person killed was extremely drunk according to the tox screen, and in another it was implied (reading between the lines in what was said in the news story) it was a suicide.

It's sad for the engineer even when s/he can't do anything to prevent it, s/he still has to live with it.

(I don't know how many women engineers there are but I assume there are at least some).

 

[John Bobinyec]

(I don't know how many women engineers there are but I assume there are at least some).

Definitely. Engineers, conductors, train dispatchers - the people you can hear on the radio.

jb

 

[MikefromCrete]

These types of accidents are pretty steady _ and as the above numbers suggest, have been going down in comparison to the population. More comprehensive news coverage via the internet make these stories more readily available. In the past, you probably would not hear of most of these incidents, only those in your local area. It's difficult to eliminate many of these accidents. When I worked for a railroad back in the late 1960's, we had an accident when a guy WALKED into the third diesel unit of a moving freight train. He was quite drunk.

 

[WoodyinNYC]

… in another it was implied (reading between the lines in what was said in the news story) it was a suicide.

It's sad for the engineer even when s/he can't do anything to prevent it, s/he still has to live with it.

(I don't know how many women engineers there are but I assume there are at least some).

It's sad for the engineers even when they can't do anything to prevent it, they still have to live with it.

Using the neutral plural often avoids the clunky s/he problem. (OK, I used to be an editor.)

But thanks for being sensitive and inclusive.

 

[trainaddict]

I've written before on these blogs about the hazards of amtrak. I'm glad to see that a few of the enlightened ones are finally coming to grips with what is a national epidemic. There should be a congressional investigation into these engineers with drug testing, alcohol bans, psychological exams. Why are they behind the wheel? If a plane ran someone over it would be international news, yet the daily massacre of innocent civilians by bullet trains zooming through congested areas is accepted as "the cost of doing business." Who will be held responsible? Ask yourself: What would you do? Then you'll have your answer.

 

[chakk]

… in another it was implied (reading between the lines in what was said in the news story) it was a suicide.

It's sad for the engineer even when s/he can't do anything to prevent it, s/he still has to live with it.

(I don't know how many women engineers there are but I assume there are at least some).

It's sad for the engineers even when they can't do anything to prevent it, they still have to live with it.

Using the neutral plural often avoids the clunky s/he problem. (OK, I used to be an editor.)

But thanks for being sensitive and inclusive.

And, sadly, some of the engineers CAN'T live with it. There have been several documented incidents of engineers committing suicide after their train was involved in a fatal collision with pedestrians or people in automobiles.