Operation Lifesaver

As Carol and I were getting onto the train this morning there was a WCE employee handing out the pamphlet pictured at left to passengers. At first I laughed at the idea of Operation Lifesaver and immediately thought, “Oh look more spam from people who need to come up with various and sundry ways to spend the money they already get from us and justify raising our fares even more.” But after a brief scan of the information (written in English and French) I found it to be extremely useful and informative. An interesting fact of note: ‘Passenger/Commuter trains travel faster and are lighter than freight trains and although they may stop more quickly, it can take up to two kiliometres or 18 football fields to come to a complete stop.’ Yikes! Racing the train to get to the crossing first isn’t exactly a smart thing to do, but people do it. When working in security one night I saw the results of a freight train vs. Ford Tempo accident. What a mess. The woman, amazingly survived, even though we could see her brain through the split in her skull. Eek!! What a horrible sight. Apparently she was coming home from a late shift at aRichmond hotel and didn’t notice the lights and bells at the railway crossing on Cambie and SMUCKO!

I can sum up the information in the pamphlets into two words, BE CAREFUL! You don’t want the sneaky train to get you. Right, Carol?

Statistics on highway/railway crossing and trespassing incidents can be found at the Transportation Safety Board website. Other rail safety information can be found on the Transport Canada and Direction 2006 websites.