Native_Floridian's Blog

Okay, so we've all pretty much seen or heard the story about the Semi vs Train or Train vs Semi depending on where you saw, read or heard the story.  And we've heard, read or seen other news stories from time to time, but do you REALLY KNOW how to KEEP YOURSELF SAFE and FROM BECOMING A STATISTIC at a RailRoad Crossing?

Do you really know how to handle these malfunctioning signals?

Do you know what to do if you see a RED Road Flare burning at a crossing?

Do you know what to do if a train has stopped PRIOR to a crossing or just past it?

Do you know what to do if your vehicle gets stuck on the railroad tracks?

Now I do a lot of railfanning and I am around trains quite a bit, I am also around many different "highway rail crossings" where signals and gates are set up to protect the rails and trains from oncoming traffic, BUT these things DO MALFUNCTION from time to time and sometimes they will also GHOST long after a train has passed through the area.

I will explain what a GHOST or GHOSTING signal is after the following tips to help YOU to REMAIN SAFE at a Railroad Grade Crossing.

Now here is how YOU, as a driver, should approach ANY railroad crossing, these tips could very well SAVE YOUR LIFE!

#1. SLOW DOWN, ROLL YOUR WINDOW DOWN, TURN DOWN YOUR RADIO, GET OFF YOUR CELL PHONE and LISTEN and be prepared to STOP, if that gate malfunctions and you do not have a clear view of the tracks from BOTH sides of your vehicle, you are setting yourself up for a possible train vs vehicle collision.   If you DO NOT have a CLEAR VIEW of the tracks from either side of your vehicle, then you "should" STOP, LOOK and LISTEN BEFORE proceeding "carefully" across the tracks.  With todays advent of quieter vehicles, when your windows are up, and if you have a radio on or yapping it up on a cell phone, you MAY NOT hear the crossing signal warning bells if so equipped or even the trains horns and bells as it approaches the crossing.

#2. If you are approaching a grade (railroad) crossing and the lights are active and gates down, DO NOT DRIVE AROUND THEM, even if you DO NOT SEE or DO NOT HEAR a train, WAIT for a few minutes, if the gates and lights are on and you still hear no train, again, DO NOT DRIVE AROUND THE DOWNED GATES, get out of your vehicle and if you happen to have a cell phone, CALL the 800 NUMBER on the small white placard on the signal mast,  make sure you tell the railroad official you talk with the numbers he asks for off the placard, this tells them EXACTLY where the signal is located and where to dispatch a repair person to correct a faulty crossing signal.  Then once you've done that, make a U-TURN and drive to another area to cross the tracks to get to your destination, it is NEVER smart or safe to drive around downed gates UNLESS DIRECTED by a Police Officer or Railroad Official.

#3. If you approach a crossing and the crossing signals are not working or the red alternating flashers are working but the gates are still up AND you see a RED FLARE BURNING on the ground, this means the Railroad KNOWS the crossing has a problem and chances are they have already dispatched someone to fix the problem(s).   If you see a BURNING RED FLARE in the center of the road at a crossing and the gates are up and lights are either off or possibly flashing, refer to #1 to protect yourself.   Especially if there are more than ONE TRACK, on multiple track crossings you run a risk of another train either coming right behind the last train or a second train coming from the opposite direction.

#4. Once a train has passed and the gates are moving up and the signals still flashing, DO NOT CROSS the tracks, this is where many people don't realize that they could very well get hit by a train that may BACK UP(if stopped), another train could come from the other direction (multiple tracks) before the gates are up fully and the lights off.  You SHOULD NEVER, NOT EVER cross any Railroad tracks while a signal flasher is still active, even if the gates are completely up, WAIT until the flashing lights are COMPLETELY OFF and then wait a second or two, then proceed.    If the signal GHOSTS, chances are you're going to have damage to your vehicle!

#5. If a train has STOPPED just past the crossing and even though the gates may be rising, DO NOT CROSS the tracks!, the train MAY START A BACK UP MOVE and guess what, you're going to get hit!   Always and I do MEAN ALWAYS WAIT until the gates are completely up and the flashers have shut off completely, and if there is a train sitting just past the crossing, wait a second or two, then proceed quickly across the crossing.  The main reasons for trains stopping just after a crossing is they may be about to back up, they too, have signals just like we follow and may have a red indication because another train will be coming from the opposite direction or even in the same direction, but on a different track in a multi-track crossing.   Some trains HAVE PRIORITY over others, so one will be halted to allow another to pass, or those multi-tracks end up the line and merge back into a single mainline and two trains going opposite directions can not occupy the same tracks, so one has to wait.   This is what happens quite often in downtown Winter Park and Downtown Orlando when you see a train stopped on the tracks.

#6. If your vehicle gets stuck on the tracks and no train is coming, hopefully you have a cell phone with you, immediately get out of you vehicle and go to the nearest crossing signal and call the 800 number on the placard immediately to inform the railroad of the situation, you may just save your vehicle from becoming scrap metal.   Now if a TRAIN IS COMING, GET OUT of your vehicle IMMEDIATELY, RUN toward the train OFF THE TRACKS, NOT AWAY from it, and AWAY from your vehicle, waving your arms at the train crew in a criss cross fashion above your head,   Chances are they will still hit your vehicle, but the impact may not be as great, but if you run away from the train and it impacts your vehicle, there is a chance your vehicle when hit will end up slamming into you, injuring you seriously or killing you.  So always exit the vehicle quickly and run TOWARD the oncoming train alongside the tracks but at a minimum of 20' off to the side of the tracks to protect yourself from anything that could break loose from the train or from possible derailing rail cars if the train does hit your vehicle.

#7. Also NEVER, EVER crawl under, walk, crawl or climb between or over a STOPPED TRAIN, it could start moving again WITHOUT WARNING and you could be killed or seriously injured by loss of a limb or limbs when either the train starts moving or you get hit by the train that is about to roll by on the other track!   Also there is NO WAY the train crew can see you or know you are crawling, walking between or climbing over their train.  And even if you do survive after doing such a STUPID thing, the Railroad WILL CHARGE YOU with TRESPASSING!   Also you should NEVER, NOT EVER WALK, JOG, RUN, RIDE YOUR BICYCLE or USE Railroad tracks for a shortcut, if you are closer than 20' on either side of the tracks, you are on the Railroads Right of Way (RoW) and it is a citable offense by the railroad, again trespassing.   So stay off  and from between the railroad tracks and cross only at designated crossing areas!

Also note: Where signals are KNOWN to be malfunctioning, the Railroad does a STOP and FLAG of the crossing where the signal is not working properly, the train will stop PRIOR to the crossing (all tracks on multiple track crossings) and the conductor will climb down off the locomotive and set out (ignite) a red road flare and place it down on the center of the crossing on BOTH sides of the crossing.   When a conductor does this, YOU ARE SUPPOSED TO STOP and WAIT for him to clear the train through the crossing,  even though the flare will still be burning for a few moments AFTER the last rail car has passed, once the last car has CLEARED the crossing, you may then proceed, but still refer to #1 above ESPECIALLY if you're at a grade crossing with multiple tracks involved!

GHOST/GHOSTING crossing signals, what this is and how it happens.  What it is, is when a train has already passed through the grade crossing and the gates and lights have turned off, train is already a god distance past the crossing, but the flashers and gates RE-ACTIVATES when no train is approaching the crossing.  This will usually happen  just a few seconds after the train has passed, sometimes it can be up to several minutes AFTER the train has long gone.  So even though the signal may be GHOSTING, always treat it as if a train were coming, again, the life you save may be your own!  Because even though the signal may Ghost, there still could very well be another train on it's way.  Always be prepared, better safe than sorry!

How it happens, this was never a real issue with "jointed" rail where the rails are bolted together, but this happens more and more on WELDED railroad tracks where there is no insulator between the joint to denote the start and end of the circuit to energize the crossing signals and gates.  With welded rail, again, there is no insulator and the circuit is more complex on how it senses a train to turn on the signals and lower the gates, sometimes this circuit gets "confused" and will reset the lights and gates, thinking it still senses a train in the "block" and turns on the signaling system even though no train may be coming.  Usually a single will only GHOST ONCE, if it does it more than once, then the Railroad needs to be called and informed they have a malfunctioning signal.  This by no means the most technical explanation of how a signal GHOSTS, but putting it in the most simplistic terms I know to explain it where it's understandable by most people.

Hope this may help to save someones life!

Remember, when at a Railroad Crossing, EXPECT a train at ANYTIME and from ANY DIRECTION!  STOP, LOOK, LISTEN and LIVE!