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Is it safe to stand on train tracks?

Fact #2: Railroad Tracks Are Private Property Walking on train tracks may seem like fun, but it's actually very dangerous, not to mention illegal. All train tracks are private property, so pedestrians should never walk on or near them.



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Fact #2: Railroad Tracks Are Private Property Walking on train tracks may seem like fun, but it's actually very dangerous, not to mention illegal. All train tracks are private property, so pedestrians should never walk on or near them.

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Railroad tracks are private property, not public trails. It's illegal and dangerous to walk on or near tracks unless you're using a designated crossing.

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What happens if you stand too close to a train? Air between person and the train moves with high velocity due to dragging effect and the air behind person is approximately still.

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If there is enough time, run in the direction of traffic toward the end of the platform and use the emergency stairs there. An emergency stop will be issued by the station guard. If there's no time, lie down between the tracks, face down, head in the direction of travel.

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Wait until you can see clearly around the first train in both directions. Never walk around or behind lowered gates at a crossing. Do not cross the tracks until the lights have stopped flashing and it is safe to do so. You can be fined for failure to obey these signals.

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A train can extend three or more feet on either side of the steel rail, so the safe zone for pedestrians is well beyond three feet on either side. And when vehicles are stopped at a designated crossing, they should remain 15 feet or more from a rail.

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The train is faster, bigger, and more powerful – it can't stop fast enough to avoid you. People have died because they tried to outrun a train. Pedestrians have died because they were walking on the tracks and did not realize how fast the train was coming.

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Some drivers out there believe that you should lift your feet up when crossing over railroad tracks. There are several motivations behind this, like if you don't you'll never get married, or die young, or lose the person you're in a relationship with.

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The middle of the train is by far the safest for persons. The National Transportation Safety Board does not release comprehensive data on where victims were sitting during fatal train accidents, though some details are available in individual investigative reports.

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It is illegal to access private railroad property anywhere other than a designated pedestrian or roadway crossing. Trespassers are most often pedestrians who walk across or along railroad tracks as a shortcut to another destination.

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Railroad tracks are private property, not public trails. It's illegal to walk on the tracks unless you're at a designated crossing. It's extremely dangerous to walk, run, or drive down the railroad tracks or even alongside them.

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The rail has an electric charge, the electric charges will also vibrate due to the vibrations produced by the train from such a distance that the electric charge on the rails will flow more quickly and will form a magnetic field around the rail.

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That's because trains have an excellent safety record! According to the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB), since 1975, there has been an average of 1.3 train accidents per year involving fatalities. Compare that with 2,584 aviation accidents and 700 bus accidents over the same time period.

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Though train accidents are terrifying — and get lots of public attention when they occur — the truth is that traveling by train is much, much safer than by car.

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Trains are three times more dangerous than flying but safer than traveling by car (which is 40 times more risky than flying), according to Savage. Yet many folks are still clearly afraid to fly.

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No, generally they won't. Railcars have the right of way, hence the rails that are already in place.

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Freight and Commuter Trains Don't stop on the tracks. Make sure you have room to get across. Once you enter the crossing, keep moving. Stop 15 feet away from flashing red lights, lowered gates, a signaling flagman or a stop sign.

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