A level crossing is an intersection where a railway line crosses a road, path, or (in rare situations) airport runway, at the same level, [1] as opposed to the railway line crossing over or under using an overpass or tunnel. The term also applies when a light rail line with separate right-of-way or reserved track crosses a road in the same fashion. Other names include railway level crossing, [1] railway crossing (chiefly international), grade crossing or railroad crossing (chiefly American), [2] road through railroad, criss-cross, train crossing, and RXR (abbreviated).
There are more than 100,000 level crossings in Europe and more than 200,000 in North America.
Road-grade crossings are considered incompatible with high-speed rail [3] and are virtually non-existent in European high-speed train operations. [4]
The types of early level crossings varied by location, but often, they had a flagman in a nearby booth who would, on the approach of a train, wave a red flag or lantern to stop all traffic and clear the tracks. This was a dangerous job that cost the lives of gatekeepers and their spouses, their children, their pets and their livestock, due to the inability for a train to stop from a suitable distance. [5] Gated crossings became commonplace in many areas, as they protected the railway from people trespassing and livestock, and they protected the users of the crossing when closed by the signalman/gateman. In the second quarter of the 20th century[ citation needed ], manual or electrical closable gates that barricaded the roadway started to be introduced, intended to be a complete barrier against intrusion of any road traffic onto the railway. Automatic crossings are now commonplace in some countries as motor vehicles replaced horse-drawn vehicles and the need for animal protection diminished with time. Full, half or no-barrier crossings superseded gated crossings, although crossings of older types can still be found in places. In rural regions with sparse traffic, the least expensive type of level crossing to operate is one without flagmen or gates, with only a warning sign posted. This type has been common across North America and in many developing countries.
Some international rules have helped to harmonise level crossing. For instance, the 1968 Vienna Convention states (chapter 3, article 23b) that:
This has been implemented in many countries, including countries which are not part of the Vienna Convention.
Trains have a much larger mass relative to their braking capability, and thus a far longer braking distance than road vehicles. With rare exceptions, trains do not stop at level crossings and rely on vehicles and pedestrians to clear the tracks in advance. Several accidents have occurred where a heavy load on a slow road transporter has not cleared the line in time, eg Dalfsen train crash and Hixon rail crash. At Hixon the police escort had received no training in their responsiblities.
Level crossings constitute a significant safety concern internationally. On average, each year around 400 people in the European Union [7] and over 300 in the United States [8] are killed in level crossing accidents. Collisions can occur with vehicles as well as pedestrians; pedestrian collisions are more likely to result in a fatality. [9] Among pedestrians, young people (5–19 years), older people (60 years and over), and males are considered to be higher risk users. [10] On some commuter lines most trains may slow to stop at a station but some express or freight trains pass through stations at high speed without stopping.
As far as warning systems for road users are concerned, level crossings either have "passive" protection, in the form of various types of warning signs, or "active" protection, using automatic warning devices such as flashing lights, warning sounds, and barriers or gates. [7] In the 19th century and for much of the 20th, a sign warning "Stop, look, and listen" (or similar wording) was the sole protection at most level crossings. Today, active protection is widely available, and fewer collisions take place at level crossings with active warning systems. [11] Modern radar sensor systems can detect if level crossings are free of obstructions as trains approach. These improve safety by not lowering crossing barriers that may trap vehicles or pedestrians on the tracks, while signalling trains to brake until the obstruction clears. However, they cannot prevent a vehicle from moving out onto the track once it is far too late for the locomotive to slow even slightly. [12]
Due to the increase in road and rail traffic as well as for safety reasons, level crossings are increasingly being removed. As of 2024 [update] Melbourne is closing 110 level crossings by 2030 and (due to the proximity of some stations) rebuilding 51 stations.
At railway stations, a pedestrian level crossing is sometimes provided to allow passengers to reach other platforms in the absence of an underpass or bridge, or for disabled access. Where third rail systems have level crossings, there is a gap in the third rail over the level crossing, but this does not necessarily interrupt the power supply to trains since they may have current collectors on multiple cars.
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Source: US Department of Transportation. [13] (1 mile=1.6 km)
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Source: Eurostat: The rail accident data are provided to Eurostat by the European Railway Agency (ERA). The ERA manages and is responsible for the entire data collection. The Eurostat data constitute a part of the data collected by ERA and are part of the so-called Common Safety Indicators (CSIs). Note: Since 2010, use of national definitions is no longer permitted: 2010 CSI data represent the first fully harmonized set of figures
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Graphs are unavailable due to technical issues. There is more info on Phabricator and on MediaWiki.org. |
Traffic signal-controlled intersections next to level crossings on at least one of the roads in the intersection usually feature traffic signal preemption. [15] In the US, approaching trains activate a routine where, before the road lights and barriers are activated, all traffic signal phases go to red, except for the signal immediately after the crossing, which turns green (or flashing yellow) to allow traffic on the tracks to clear (in some cases, there are auxiliary traffic signals prior to the railroad crossing which will turn red, keeping new traffic from crossing the tracks. This is in addition to the flashing lights on the crossing barriers). After enough time to clear the crossing, the signal will turn. The crossing lights may begin flashing and the barriers lower immediately, or this might be delayed until after the traffic light turns red.
The operation of a traffic signal, while a train is present, may differ from municipality to municipality. There are a number of possible arrangements:
In France, cameras have been installed on some level crossings to obtain images to improve understanding of an incident when a technical investigation occurs. [16]
In England, cameras have been installed at some level crossings. [17] [18]
In South Australia, cameras have been installed at some level crossings to deter non-compliance with signals. [19]
Designs of level crossings vary between countries.
Level crossings present a significant risk of collisions between trains and road vehicles. This list is not a definitive list of the world's worst accidents and the events listed are limited to those where a separate article describes the event in question.
Aircraft runways sometimes cross roads or rail lines, and require signaling to avoid collisions.
Winston Churchill Avenue intersects the runway of Gibraltar International Airport at surface level; movable barricades close when aircraft land or take off.
As of March 2023, a tunnel under the runway opened to regular traffic, and the level crossing will only be available to pedestrians, cyclists and e-scooters. [45]
After the runway of Kai Tak Airport was extended in 1943, it intersected with the easternmost section of Prince Edward Road, so all road traffic had to be stopped during takeoffs and landings. The issue was relieved when the authorities constructed a new runway for replacement in September 1958. [46]
The Fianarantsoa-Côte Est railway crosses the runway at Manakara Airport. It is one of the few airports in the world that crosses an active railway line.
A level crossing near Gisborne, sees the Palmerston North - Gisborne Line cross one of Gisborne Airport's runways. Aircraft landing on sealed 1310-metre runway 14L/32R are signalled with two red flashing lights on either side of the runway and a horizontal bar of flashing red lights to indicate the runway south of the railway line is closed, and may only land on the 866 metres (2,841 ft) section of the runway north of the railway line. When the full length of the runway is open, a vertical bar of green lights signal to the aircraft, with regular rail signals on either side of the runway indicating trains to stop. [47] [48]
The runway of Ometepe Airport crosses the highway NIC-64.
As of February 2023, there exists one road-runway crossing at Catarman Airport in Northern Samar. [49]
The Visby Lärbro Line between Visby and Lärbro crossed the runway of Visby Airport between 1956 and 1960. [50]
Two public roads cross the runway at Meiringen Air Base. Electrically operated gates close when aircraft land or take off. [51]
An intersection or an at-grade junction is a junction where two or more roads converge, diverge, meet or cross at the same height, as opposed to an interchange, which uses bridges or tunnels to separate different roads. Major intersections are often delineated by gores and may be classified by road segments, traffic controls and lane design.
A pedestrian crossing is a place designated for pedestrians to cross a road, street or avenue. The term "pedestrian crossing" is also used in the Vienna and Geneva Conventions, both of which pertain to road signs and road traffic.
Traffic lights, traffic signals, or stoplights – also known as robots in South Africa, Zambia, and Namibia – are signaling devices positioned at road intersections, pedestrian crossings, and other locations in order to control the flow of traffic.
A warning sign is a type of sign which indicates a potential hazard, obstacle, or condition requiring special attention. Some are traffic signs that indicate hazards on roads that may not be readily apparent to a driver.
In civil engineering, grade separation is a method of aligning a junction of two or more surface transport axes at different heights (grades) so that they will not disrupt the traffic flow on other transit routes when they cross each other. The composition of such transport axes does not have to be uniform; it can consist of a mixture of roads, footpaths, railways, canals, or airport runways. Bridges, tunnels, or a combination of both can be built at a junction to achieve the needed grade separation.
On March 15, 1999, Amtrak's southbound City of New Orleans passenger train collided with a semi-trailer truck in the village of Bourbonnais, Illinois, United States. Most of the train derailed, killing eleven people. A National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) investigation into the accident attributed the cause to the truck driver trying to beat the train across a grade crossing. The NTSB's recommendations from the accident included increased enforcement of grade crossing signals, the installation of train event recorders at all new or improved grade crossings, and procedures to provide emergency responders with accurate lists of all crew members and passengers aboard trains. The city of Bourbonnais erected a memorial near the site to commemorate those killed in the accident.
On 6 January 1968, a low-loader transporter carrying a 120-ton electrical transformer was struck by a British Rail express train on a recently installed automatic level crossing at Hixon, Staffordshire, England.
The 1995 Fox River Grove bus–train collision was a grade crossing collision that killed seven students riding aboard a school bus in Fox River Grove, Illinois, on the morning of October 25, 1995. The school bus, driven by a substitute driver, was stopped at a traffic light with the rearmost portion extending onto a portion of the railroad tracks when it was struck by a Metra Union Pacific Northwest Line train, train 624 en route to Chicago.
The Gilchrest Road crossing accident was a grade crossing incident that occurred on March 24, 1972, in the town of Clarkstown, New York, between the hamlets of Valley Cottage and Congers, roughly 25 miles (40 km) northwest of New York City. Five students from Valley Cottage were killed, and 44 others were injured.
In Lockington, England on 26 July 1986, the 09:33 passenger train from Bridlington to Kingston upon Hull on the Hull to Scarborough Line struck a passenger van on a level crossing.
The HaBonim disaster was an accident which took place on June 11, 1985, when an Israel Railways train collided with a bus carrying schoolchildren on a field trip from Y.H. Brenner middle school in Petah Tikva, Israel. The crash happened near Moshav HaBonim, killing 22 people, and injuring 17.
Level crossing signals are electronic warning devices for road vehicles at railroad level crossings.
The Midland train crash was a rail crossing accident that occurred on November 15, 2012 in Midland, Texas. A freight train struck a flatbed trailer being used as a parade float carrying 26 passengers, killing four and injuring 16. The parade was en route to a veterans' benefit sponsored by the local charity Show of Support/Hunt for Heroes.
The Ottawa bus–train crash was a collision that occurred between an OC Transpo double-decker bus and a Via Rail train in the Ottawa suburb of Barrhaven on September 18, 2013, that killed six people.
On the evening of February 3, 2015, a commuter train on Metro-North Railroad's Harlem Line struck a passenger car at a grade crossing on Commerce Street near Valhalla, New York, United States. Six people were killed and 15 others injured, seven severely. It is the deadliest crash in Metro-North's history, and was at the time the deadliest rail accident in the United States since the June 2009 Washington Metro train collision, which killed nine passengers and injured 80.
There are around 6,000 level crossings in the United Kingdom, of which about 1,500 are public highway crossings. This number is gradually being reduced as the risk of accidents at level crossings is considered high. The director of the UK Railway Inspectorate commented in 2004 that "the use of level crossings contributes the greatest potential for catastrophic risk on the railways." The creation of new level crossings on the national network is banned, with bridges and tunnels being the more favoured options. The cost of making significant reductions, other than by simply closing the crossings, is substantial; some commentators argue that the money could be better spent. Some 5,000 crossings are user-worked crossings or footpaths with very low usage. The removal of crossings can improve train performance and lower accident rates, as some crossings have low rail speed limits enforced on them to protect road users. In fact, between 1845 and 1933, there was a 4 miles per hour (6.4 km/h) speed limit on level crossings of turnpike roads adjacent to stations for lines whose authorising act of Parliament had been consolidated in the Railways Clauses Consolidation Act 1845 although this limit was at least sometimes disregarded.
Designs of level crossings, where railway lines cross roads or other paths, vary country-to-country.
On June 27, 2022, the Southwest Chief, a passenger train operated by Amtrak, derailed near the small town of Mendon, Missouri. The derailment was caused by the train striking a dump truck that was obstructing the crossing of County Road 113, about three miles (4.8 km) southwest of Mendon. Four people were killed in the wreck: three passengers on board the train and the truck driver, with up to 150 people injured.
There are over 3,000 level crossings in New Zealand, with about 1330 being publicly maintained by KiwiRail as of 2013. Of these, 275 crossings were protected by flashing red lights, bells, and half-arm barriers; and 421 are protected by flashing red lights and bells only. The remainder are controlled by "Stop and Give Way" signs. Level crossings are the responsibility of rail infrastructure owner KiwiRail Network, the NZ Transport Agency, and if the crossing is on a local road, the local city or district council. Much like Australia, New Zealand employs American-made crossing warning equipment. There were also in 2013 some 110 stand-alone public pedestrian level crossings; and some private level crossings, which are the responsibility of the land owner.
Highway grade crossings are generally incompatible with HSR operation
with the exception of a few grade crossings in Italy, all high-speed rail crossings are grade separated
Un feu rouge clignotant; ou deux feux rouges, clignotant alternativement, dont l'un apparaît quand l'autre s'éteint, montés sur le même support à la même hauteur et orientés dans la même direction signifient que les véhicules ne doivent pas franchir la ligne d'arrêt ou, s'il n'y a pas de ligne d'arrêt, l'aplomb du signal; ces feux ne peuvent être employés qu'aux passages à niveau [et dans certaines autres circonstances]...un feu jaune clignotant ou deux feux jaunes clignotant alternativement signifient que les conducteurs peuvent passer, mais avec une prudence particulière.