On practice tracks across the country, it’s a tragic occurrence: someone takes their own life or falls fatally in front of an approaching locomotive.
According to the U.S. authorities, trespasser deaths, along with suicides, are “the primary explanation” for rail-related decline in the US.
Federal Railroad Administration of the United States Department of Transportation (FRA), in response to a Freedom of Data Act Request, revealed that 3,687 people lost their lives due to “trespasser attacks” across the country between 2012 and 2017. This information includes intentional deaths as well as unintentional and inconclusive ones.
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Of these strikes, 1 332 were deemed suicides whereas 2 355 were not.
According to the FRA, California, New York and Florida “always had the most variety of deadly trespasser attacks.”
California had the highest number of deaths — 250 suicides, and 451 other types. Illinois ranked second in suicides, but only seventh for non-suicides.
“Tragically 220 people use the tracks each year to commit suicide, making it a major security issue for DOT,” said Karen Philbrick. The Mineta Transportation Institute is a California-based institute that was founded by Congress in 1991 to provide policy-oriented analysis to assist the development of transportation systems. The number of people killed by trains has increased dramatically since 2000.
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The spring is the most common time for suicides, while non-suicides are more frequent in summer. The majority of suicides occur in the late night hours, between 8 pm and 12 am on both weekdays as well as weekends. Non-suicides are most common during the weekday evening commute (4 p.m. to 8 p.m.), and early morning before 4 a.m.
The implications are far-reaching.
The FRA stated that “the impact of these incidents goes beyond the loss of life. Practice crews experience trauma, railroads in their communities experience disrupted service. Street closures are also experienced with an estimated financial effect of 4.6 millions per incident.” Many trespasser deaths are preventable. “Railroads can more effectively design and implement countermeasures if they have a better understanding of these incidents, including the intention of the trespassers involved.”
Federal Railroad Administration (U.S. Division of Transportation)
New Yorkers are not able to go a week without a suicide attempt or a trip through the underground tunnels of the five boroughs. In the last few months, two New York incidents have seen a parent or mother leap onto the tracks while holding a child in their arms. The kid survived in both cases.
In 2017, there were 900 incidents in New York Metropolis. There are many reasons for these incidents: urinating or intoxication; slipping, or trying to recover something they dropped. Then there is the horror of people being pushed.
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In 2012, Ki Suk Han, a 58-year old New Yorker was pushed onto the subway tracks by a panhandler who was 30 years old and emotionally disturbed. He died when he hit an approaching practice. The person was heard screaming in the background as they desperately scrambled to reach the platform.
Philbrick explained that “as soon as you engage the emergency brakes, it can take up to a mile for your car to stop. There’s also no such thing as swerving.” In comparison, it only takes a passenger car about 200 feet to stop in an emergency. Recent reviews have shown that about half of the railroad staff will be involved in an important incident during their career. The practice operator is powerless to stop the inevitable.
Fox News reported that a practice driver who asked to remain anonymous told them she saw a man in his mid-twenties on the edge of the subway platform preparing to jump one morning late 2018. She hit the brakes because she knew the subway would not stop in time. Just before the training approached, another ready passenger pulled the undoubtedly jumper back from the sting.
On September 15, 2019, in New York City, an F train pulls in to the W. 8th Street Subway Station at Coney Island.
On September 15, 2019, a F-type pulls into the W. eighth Road Subway Station at Coney Island, Brooklyn in New York Metropolis.
Gary Hershorn/Corbis via Getty Pictures
She still has nightmares about the incident.
The FRA focuses on proactive and nationwide efforts to address the issue.
Hong Kong, Paris and other major cities have installed platform doors and partitions in many stations to stop track-falling. The Metropolitan Transportation Authority of New York has also been installing prototype suicide prevention fencing on the Verrazzano Narrows Bridge. However, consultants say that the problem is complex and multifaceted.
Federal Railroad Administration (U.S. Division of Transportation)
The Mineta Transportation Institute suggests that railroad employees receive more in-depth suicide awareness training. It acknowledges the fact that “obstacles” are needed but not enough. They also urge prevention efforts to focus “in the and around the immediate area of the rail stations or platforms”, and in areas with financial hardship where research has determined suicide rates to be higher.
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Philbrick also recommends additional measures such as signage and digital displays, promoting helpline services, detection and monitoring.
Federal Railroad Administration (U.S. Division of Transportation)
She said, “We need to change the dialogue about suicide so that it can be discussed without fear of negative penalties.” “The railroad industry can play a part in making this change a reality by providing public information, in an accountable way, about their efforts in stopping suicide.”
Hollie McKay is a Fox Information Digital employee reporter. She has been with the company since 2007. She has reported extensively from conflict zones, including Iraq, Syria and Yemen. She also investigated international conflicts, battle crimes and terrorism in Latin America, Afghanistan, Pakistan and Burma. Follow her on Twitter and Instagram at @holliesmckay
