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approaching hazard clearly and sufficiently in advance to avoid the hazard. In this way, only minimal demands upon a motorist's perceptual and judgmental capabilities will be required. This was demonstrated by this accident, in which the truckdriver either ignored or failed to recognize the advance warning devices and the hazard of the approaching train until it was too late to make a successful evasive maneuver. If the crossing had been protected by active devices, the truckdriver might have noticed them and stepped before he reached the crossing.
The installation of conventional active protection alone is not foolproof; the value of such devices can be negated by human error. Nevertheless, they can reduce accidents and accident severity when they are installed at hazardous crossings. A survey[1] conducted by the State of California showed that the upgrading of protection at grade crossings between 1965 and 1972 resulted in a 41-percent reduction of vehicle-train accidents and casualties.
Active protection (flashing lights] had been planned for this crossing but was not in place on the day of the accident. The administrative process required to obtain such an installation was not begun when the process to reconstruct the road was begun. Had the administrative process been initiated more expeditiously, the flashing lights might have been installed and operational on the morning of the accident.
Investigation into statewide safety practices suggested that this case of delay was unique; State officials did not recall any similar situations within the past few years. However, this does not mean that it has not occurred previously in Illinois or elsewhere or that it will not occur again. Therefore the need for organizational efficiency in the planning and implementation of active protection of grade crossings is a problem which must be solved.
In July 1975, the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) contracted[2] with the Texas Transportation Institute to solve a related problem—the lack of a guidebood and training program which contains all the subjects related to grade crossing safety and which could be used by highway and railroad engineers. The guidebook now being developed includes a section entitled "Systems Administration." The improvement of grade crossings woald be enhanced if this section included a standard administrative methodology for the planning and implementation of active protection at grade crossings.
- ↑ California Public Utilities Commission, "The Effectiveness of Automatic Warning Devices in Reducing Accidents at Gradecrossings in California," San Francisco, California, August 1, 1975.
- ↑ Federal Highway Administration. "The Railroad-Highway Gradecrossing Handbook Project," Washington, D. C., 1976.
