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Railroad crossing accident prevention
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<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-family: verdana,geneva;"><span style="font-size: small;">It is easy to miss the point about the lack of a yellow light phase at grade crossings:</span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: verdana,geneva;"><span style="font-size: small;"> <o:p></o:p></span></span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-family: verdana,geneva;"><span style="font-size: small;">Practically speaking, you don’t need the yellow light because there is a warning time built into the period between start of activation and the train arriving at the crossing.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So there is no problem arising directly from the missing yellow light.</span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: verdana,geneva;"><span style="font-size: small;"> <o:p></o:p></span></span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-family: verdana,geneva;"><span style="font-size: small;">The problem is more of an indirect nature.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The problem is cultivating a belief on the part of drivers that it is okay to violate the red flashing signals.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The official approval for that violation comes from a crossing warning that presents a full stop command to drivers when it is impossible for them to comply because they need time to decelerate. </span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: verdana,geneva;"><span style="font-size: small;"> <o:p></o:p></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 12pt; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA;"><span style="font-family: verdana,geneva;"><span style="font-size: small;">Authorities wag their fingers at drivers and lecture them about stopping for the red flashing lights, and then blithely set up a warning system that makes it impossible to stop in time.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>To drivers, it is a mixed message.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It waters down the authority of the warning system.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It gives encouragement to gate running.</span></span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"><span style="font-family: verdana,geneva;"><span style="font-size: small;"> </span></span> </span></span></p>
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