Train safety: Stop, look, listen — live

OLGA Shcherenkov, 26, Angellina Rodriguez, 17, Juan Martinez, 50, and Maia Haykin, 49, have something in common: grieving family and friends stunned by the news that they were killed by trains in the past few weeks.

So far this year, 10 people have been killed by trains as they walked on or across the tracks in Washington. Nine of the fatalities in 2008 have been pedestrians. Maia was on a bicycle. Sixteen were killed last year

Too often, Washington ranks near the top 15 states for such railroad fatalities. With nearly 6,000 highway railroad crossings, rising population and robust growth in freight and passenger rail traffic, we must do everything we can to reduce the risk of such avoidable tragedies.

Part of the answer lies in prevention — added safety measures such as fencing, signage, gates and signals. But in the end, education about rail safety and common-sense precautions are even more important.

The Washington Utilities and Transportation Commission (UTC) investigates train accidents, inspects railroad crossings, approves rail-safety projects, and manages Operation Lifesaver, a statewide rail-safety education program.

We have made significant improvements to rail safety during the past several years, notably helping to pay for fencing off an infamous 1-mile stretch of track at Seattle's Golden Gardens Park, where 13 people, mostly teenagers, were killed from 1994 to 2004. There have been no injuries or fatalities in the past three years at Golden Gardens.

From Seattle to remote rural areas, the UTC has provided state matching funds to repair road surfaces at crossings; replace or install gates, lighting and signs at crossings; or build fencing near schools, parks and ballfields to prevent "shortcuts" from becoming dead ends.

While these safety improvements are important, they are not a substitute for your sense of sight, sense of sound or your common sense. We delivered that message to more than 10,000 students last year through Operation Lifesaver. In 2006, we trained more that 10,000 school-bus drivers in a partnership with the Office of the Superintendent of Public Instruction.

If Olga, Angellina, Juan and Maia could share a message with you and with kids about to get out of school for the summer, it might very well be "Stop, look, listen and live."

Stay off the tracks. Never walk on or near railroad tracks. It is dangerous and it is illegal trespassing.

Pay extra attention to multiple tracks. Wait for the train to pass and watch out for a second train that may be approaching from either direction.

Hang up the cellphone and turn off the iPod. Modern trains run on seamless ribbons of welded rail and can approach very quietly. Some have a powered locomotive in the back and there is no engine noise up front.

Do not race a train. An approaching train is closer and moving faster than you think. Stop and wait for it to pass before you cross the tracks.

Lights flashing? Gates down? Do not attempt to cross the tracks. Only cross tracks at designated vehicle or pedestrian crossings. If no signals are present at the crossing, slow down and look both ways before going over the tracks.

An average freight train with 100 cars weighs between 12 and 20 million pounds and takes more than a mile to stop in emergency braking. The train has to be on the tracks; you have a choice. Please make the right one and live.