Taking a fatal walk

Just as it seems that not a day goes by without Amtrak announcing a change that reduces the utility of their trains, so, too, does it seem that there is a report of somebody losing their life while walking--trespassing that is--on railroad property. If it also seems that those reports are more frequent now than they have ever been, that is because they are.

The great state of California accounts for the most fatalities, according to Federal Railroad Administration stats. That's understandable when one considers the size, population, and railroad density of those populated parts. What's not understandable is this: What the devil are people thinking!!!?

While I don't attribute the capacity for logical thinking to many of my fellow human beings, it should be a no-brainer that getting hit by a moving train--even obliquely--is going to result in death or serious injury. I suppose that may make it a close second to a bullet to the brain for the purpose of suicide. On the other hand, almost half of those collisions between a train and a human body cited for California above did not result in death, suggesting either that suicidal people are making bad choices or that it may not have been the intention of many, if not most, trespassers to get hit.

My own railroad trespassing days probably ended in the early 1970s when I lived for a time in a rural area where the tracks were not busy, the land was flat, and one could both see and hear a train coming from miles away. I look back and see that I was probably lucky and likely very stupid. Most of this was done by me for either the purpose of getting photos of trains or for collecting (read as "midnight requisitioning") railroad artifacts from the rights of way. In any case, I was a railfan and had grown up in an environment (the Chicago area) where railroad lines were always active. I knew the risks.

Contemporary trespassers appear to be much more casual and often truly uninterested in the railroads on which they trespass. There's a cachet to be had in posting unusual photos on Websites like Pinterest, Facebook and Snapchat, so some of the trespasses occur as people are trying to take unique photos. In some cases, people have merely stepped back while trying to take a selfie and into the path of a moving train. Even railfans get wrapped up in taking photos and fail to have safe situational awareness.

Other reasons for trespassing appear to be more related to simple ignorance. This is where people don't seem to know the risks. A rural track in a scenic area seems idyllic until thousands of tons of heavy machinery are bearing down on you. A track doesn't seem that difficult to cross until one trips over a rail. It's easier to walk on the ties than in the weeds next to the tracks.

Power brakes on cars and trucks have made for a general populace that doesn't have a feel for the actual physical power necessary to bring even a small vehicle to a safe stop. But heavy equipment doesn't stop on a dime, or even in a city block. It's why airports have long runways and why locomotive engineers have to start making preparations for a stop a mile or miles before the intended stopping point.

The slogan, "If you see tracks, think trains," makes for a good starting point in preventing these accidents. A better one might be, "If you see tracks, stay off!"

© 2019 - C. A. Turek - mistertrains@gmail.com