Michigan Sees Recent Rise In Number Of Train-Vehicle Crashes

DETROIT (WWJ/AP) - Officials say errors by motorists, including distracted driving, are mostly to blame for an increase in train-vehicle crashes in Michigan.

Federal Railroad Administration figures show Michigan recorded 78 crashes last year where 12 people died and 25 were injured, according to a report in The Detroit News. It's the tenth highest collision rate in the country. A year earlier, there were 61 crashes, with three deaths and 26 injuries.

Increased regulations and safety measures over the last 40 years had contributed to an earlier decline.

"The sad truth is that nearly all these deaths are preventable," Sam Crowl, state coordinator of Operation Lifesaver, a nationwide nonprofit promoting railroad crossing safety and trespassing prevention, told the newspaper.

Crowl added that people "are just in too much of a rush" and that "impatient drivers just don't care."

"People don't understand how hard it is to judge the speed of a train coming at you," he said. "It's often hard to tell the difference between the speed of a freight train at 40 mph or a passenger train at 110 mph."

The Michigan Department of Transportation says they're trying to reduce the number of crashes with an annual safety program that installs enhanced warning devices at some crossings.

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