"Don't risk it" is the message behind a new educational campaign focused on train and rail safety.
Spearheaded by the Broward Metropolitan Planning Organization, the safety campaign is an attempt to reduce train accidents in South Florida.
“Don’t try to beat the train. Make sure you’re taking your time. Be a little bit more patient because it’s not worth the risk,” said Gregory Stuart, the Executive Director of the Broward Metropolitan Planning Organization.
The effort is in collaboration with the cities of Deerfield Beach, Pompano Beach, Fort Lauderdale, Hollywood and Hallandale Beach. Mayors across Broward County and the SFRTA/Tri-Rail Executive Director, David Dech, were all in attendance for the unveiling of the campaign on Monday.
The Hurricane season is on. Our meteorologists are ready. Sign up for the NBC 6 Weather newsletter to get the latest forecast in your inbox.
“Since Brightline has come on the East rail system and now in the future Coastal Link, will be coming on with Broward County, it’s most important that we educate the public on safety measures when crossing railroads,” said Broward County Mayor Lamar Fisher.
This past Sunday, a pedestrian was killed in Deerfield Beach. Detectives say a woman was on the tracks when she was struck by a Brightline train and a Florida East Coast Railway cargo train.
According to the nonprofit, Operation Lifesaver, Inc. (OLI), current Federal Railroad Administration statistics report that 2,188 highway-rail grade crossing collisions occurred in 2022. Florida ranks No. 4 out of the top 25 states on that list with 117 collisions, 21 deaths and 51 injuries.
The Broward MPO compiled these stats from the Federal Railroad Administration’s (FRA) database.
The print and video ad campaign is going up to remind people to be patient, obey warning signals and stay alert at all railroad crossings.
“It’s education which that’s what this is about, but it’s also generally being used to the environment of rail. The Northeast has had rail transportation for generations. We are late to the game as far as local commuter rail like we’re trying to develop now," said Pompano Beach Mayor Rex Hardin. "We’re trying to educate our residents to make sure they understand that this is critically important and they’ve got to be careful."
Transportation leaders also addressed how mental illness can present some challenges to rail safety.
“For the folks that have gotten on the railroad trespassing wise, getting hit when they walk across, some of those are suicides, so there are other efforts in store to try and address the suicide issues," Stuart said. "But for those people who are going through the rail crossings and the gate went down and they leave their tail in the crossing, they’re still going to get hit so we need to make sure we have people understanding where they need to be."
A video of the safety campaign can be found here.
