ON THE RIGHT TRACK

Missouri is on the right track in its efforts to make grade crossings safer, says the state's manager of railroad safety.

In the past 20 years, Missouri has used federal and state funds to close some railroad crossings and install signals and gates at others.

Since 1973, Missouri has spent about $12 million in state money and some $60 million in federal funds to make grade crossings safer, said Rick Mooney, manager of railroad safety for the Missouri Division of Motor Carrier and Railroad Safety.

Those efforts and the Operation Lifesaver safety education program have made a difference, Mooney said.

Mooney also serves as state coordinator for Operation Lifesaver, a program involving the state and railroads.

In 1976, there were 283 accidents at railroad grade crossings in the state. Mooney said 42 people were killed and 133 others were injured in those accidents.

Last year, there were 104 train-vehicle collisions at public crossings. Seventeen people died in those collisions and 28 others were injured.

Six of the fatalities occurred in Southeast Missouri, including two who died in a single accident at a crossing in Oran on March 8, 1996. The crossing has no warning light or gate.

In addition statewide, one pedestrian died after being struck by a train.

Also, there were 19 incidents involving people trespassing on railroad tracks, away from any crossings. Nine people died and a dozen others were injured in those incidents.

Three more died as a result of suicide.

Twenty-two collisions occurred at private crossings, killing one person and injuring five others.

Southeast Missouri had frequent grade-crossing accidents years ago, Mooney said. The safety efforts over the years have led to fewer train-vehicle collisions in the region, he said.

Part of that is due to better signal circuitry to detect oncoming trains and the work of state inspectors who check the crossing signals, Mooney said.

State inspectors also check to see that railroads cut down vegetation that could obstruct the view of motorists at grade crossings.

The state fines railroads if they don't keep the vegetation in check. "It is one of the things we really crack down on," said Mooney.

Today's safety devices measure the speed of an approaching train and activate gates and lights that provide an approximate 25-second warning to motorists, he said.

The state currently spends about $5 million a year on crossing safety projects.

About $1 million of the money is generated by a 25-cent fee paid by Missourians when they renew their license plates. The rest comes from the federal government, Mooney said.

Much of the money goes to install signals and gates at crossings. Last year alone, there were nearly 60 such projects.

In 1991, the federal Department of Transportation said it wanted to see 25 percent of the nation's grade crossings closed by the year 2000. Missouri had about 4,400 railroad crossings in 1991. "That means 1,100 need to be closed. We are not going to reach that," Mooney said.

But the state has closed more crossings in recent years and its grade-crossing safety program is far ahead of many other states, Mooney said.

In the late 1980s, Missouri closed about five crossings a year.

Last year, Missouri closed 18 crossings. The state has closed 11 crossings so far in 1997 and expects to have closed another nine by year's end, he said.

"It takes a lot of effort to get them closed," said Mooney. The process often takes 18 months to two years.

Often, the state closes a grade crossing while improving a nearby crossing. In other cases, the railroads and the state give money to the local government as compensation for closing a crossing.

Crossings can't be closed without the approval of an administrative law judge, he said.

Within the next year in south Cape Girardeau, a Burlington Northern Santa Fe crossing at Cooper Street is scheduled to be closed while signals and gates will be installed just up the line at the LaCruz Street crossing.

The installation of lights and gates will cost about $140,000, Mooney said. The state will provide the lights and gates and the railroad will install them.

The signals and gates should be in operation by April 1998 at the latest, he said.

But even gates and warning lights don't replace the need for caution on the part of motorists, Mooney said.

Alcohol is a factor in many of the accidents, he said.

A month ago, two people died at a crossing in northern Missouri when a pickup truck struck a train car.

The train engine had already passed by, along with about 19 of the train cars, when the accident occurred, Mooney said. The pickup truck was demolished.

Mooney said motorists should always be careful in crossing railroad tracks. "When coming to a crossing, slow down and be prepared to stop, look and listen for the train."

It could be a matter of life and death, he said.