THE VISIBILITY AND AUDIBILITY OF TRAINS APPROACHING RAIL- HIGHWAY GRADE CROSSINGS. FINAL REPORT

THE STUDY INVESTIGATES DEVICES AND COLOR SCHEMES, PROPOSED OR IN USE ON LOCOMOTIVES, WHICH SERVE TO MAKE THE TRAIN VISIBLE OR AUDIBLE TO MOTORISTS APPROACHING GRADE CROSSINGS. A COLOR SCHEME USING TWO CONTRASTING COLORS, EACH COLOR AT LEAST 3 1/2 X 5 FEET IN AREA, IS RECOMMENDED FOR VISIBILITY AT 1,000 FEET. ONE COLOR SHOULD BE VERY BRIGHT, SUCH AS FLUORESCENT OR BRIGHT YELLOW. TWO HIGH-OUTPUT XENON STROBE LAMPS ARE RECOMMENDED, ONE ON EACH SIDE OF THE CAB ROOF, TO FLASH ALTERNATELY WHENEVER THE TRAIN IS MOVING. AT NIGHT, LIGHTED PANELS ARE RECOMMENDED AS SUPPLEMENTS TO THE STROBE LAMPS. THE SOUND LEVEL REQUIRED TO RELIABLY ALERT A MOTORIST WAS FOUND TO BE 105 DP JUST OUTSIDE THE VEHICLE. IN HIGH SPEED ENCOUNTERS, PRESENT HORNS CANNOT RELIABLY WARN MOTORISTS EARLY ENOUGH. A HORN WITH ENOUGH OUTPUT TO BE TOTALLY EFFECTIVE WOULD BE AN UNACCEPTABLE NUISANCE. THE REPORT INCLUDES A BIBLIOGRAPHY AND TABLES OF REQUIRED RANGES. /AUTHOR/

• Supplemental Notes:
  • REPORT NO FRA-RP-71-2
• Corporate Authors:

  Systems Consultants, Incorporated

  1050 31st Street, NW
  Washington, DC  United States  20007
• Authors:
  • Aurelius, J P
  • Korobow, N
• Publication Date: 1971-5

Media Info

• Features: Figures; References; Tables;
• Pagination: 163 p.

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Color codes; Railroad grade crossings; Railroad signals; Railroad trains; Warning signals; Warning systems
• Old TRIS Terms: Visible traffic warning
• Subject Areas: Highways; Railroads; Safety and Human Factors; Vehicles and Equipment;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 00223809
• Record Type: Publication
• Source Agency: Nat Safety Council Safety Res Info Serv
• Files: TRIS
• Created Date: Aug 7 1972 12:00AM