Minnesota Operation Lifesaver: 76 Crashes at Minnesota Crossings in 2002

National Railroad Crossing Safety Day Proclaimed for May 14, 2003

ST. PAUL, Minn., May 12 -- Seventy-six crashes caused 10 deaths and 31 injuries at Minnesota's public and private highway-rail grade crossings in 2002, according to preliminary reports from the Federal Railroad Administration released today by the Minnesota Operation Lifesaver railroad safety program. Another six people died and three more were injured as a result of trespassing, resulting in a preliminary total of 16 railroad-related deaths and 34 injuries.

On average, more people die in highway-rail crashes each year than in commercial and general aviation crashes combined. National Operation Lifesaver Awareness Day, Wednesday, May 14, is designed to raise public awareness of potentially life threatening safety issues at the nation's more than 200,000 highway-rail grade crossings. A vehicle and train collide approximately every two hours in the U.S., killing more than 400 people each year. In addition, in a typical year nearly 500 people die as a result of trespassing on railroad property and right-of-ways.

"A 150-car freight train traveling at 50 miles per hour takes approximately one-and-a-half miles to stop," said Mike Langer, state coordinator of Minnesota Operation Lifesaver. "Vehicle drivers must remain alert, respect warning devices, and never try to beat a train to a crossing, because even if it's a tie, you lose."

Since its inception in 1972, the national Operation Lifesaver program has been credited by the Federal Highway Administration with saving an estimated 10,000 lives and preventing more than 40,000 injuries. For more information about railroad safety, see www.oli.org or www.mnsafetycouncil.org/ontheroadway/ol/ .

Minnesota Operation Lifesaver offers free presentations to schools, clubs, civic organizations, professional drivers, driver education students and other interested groups, detailing how and why grade crossing collisions occur, and what the public can do to prevent them. Videos, brochures and other educational materials on highway-rail grade crossing safety are also available. For information, or to arrange a presentation, contact Minnesota Operation Lifesaver at (651) 291-9150 or (800) 444-9150.

Minnesota Operation Lifesaver is part of Operation Lifesaver, Inc., a nationwide, not-for-profit public information and education program aimed at preventing and reducing the number of crashes, injuries and fatalities at highway-rail grade crossings. Established in 1982, Minnesota Operation Lifesaver is a cooperative effort of the Minnesota Safety Council, the railroads of Minnesota, federal and state agencies and other organizations interested in halting these needless tragedies.

The Minnesota Safety Council, founded in 1928, is a non-governmental, not- for-profit organization dedicated to improving the quality of life in Minnesota by preventing unintentional injuries and deaths.