A REVIEW OF RAILWAY LEVEL CROSSINGS IN RELATION TO ROAD SAFETY

This project was to establish the reduction in accidents, injuries and fatalities that could be expected in Australia from the provision of appropriate protection systems at level crossings in urban and non-urban situations. The report is based upon a review and analysis of Australian and overseas research and practice. It was found that most level crossing accidents do not involve a train. More injury accidents but few fatalities occurred when there was no train involved. The fatality rate when a train was involved was high. Rail crossing accident countermeasures are not always effective. A bridge may be as dangerous as the crossing it replaces. Accident severity generally decreased following installations of gates and boom barriers, flashing signals, improved train braking, flashing train mounted advices, and improved visibility of track and train. Passive warning devices should be, but usually are not, very effective, as with train mounted impact reduction devices. Hazard increased between 6 a.m. and 4 p.m. and depended on quadrant visibility at the crossing site. A greater hazard occurs at crossings where trains operated in high speed ranges. Equations for hazard indices and accident prevention formulae are given. There is a clear need for a coordinated study to examine the problem of railway crossing accidents in Australia. /MW/

• Supplemental Notes:
  • Sponsored by the Australian Dept. of Transport.
• Corporate Authors:

  Monash University

  Department of Civil Engineering
  Clayton, Victoria  Australia  3800

  Melbourne University, Australia

  Department of Civil Engineering, Grattan Street
  Parkville, Victoria 3053,   Australia 
• Authors:
  • Ogden, K W
  • Patton, T A
  • Clark, N
• Publication Date: 1973-6

Media Info

• Features: References; Tables;
• Pagination: 122 p.

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Crash causes; Crash severity; Fatalities; Grade crossing protection systems; Injuries; Intersections; Prevention; Railroad grade crossings; Safety; Signal lights; Warning systems
• Geographic Terms: Australia
• Old TRIS Terms: Grade crossing protection
• Subject Areas: Design; Highways; Railroads; Safety and Human Factors; Security and Emergencies;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 00099591
• Record Type: Publication
• Source Agency: National Safety Council Safety Research Info Serv
• Report/Paper Numbers: NR/10
• Files: TRIS
• Created Date: Nov 5 1976 12:00AM