“Most dangerous railroad crossings”: what the records can tell you

FRA's prediction system does not rank crossings.

FRA warns against treating its model output as a final conclusion or using it for unintended purposes. The agency's caveat applies whenever you interpret the prediction.

The Atlas does not publish an ordered danger list or color a map by a purported safety level. Look at the facts for the crossing you are investigating and keep each measure within its purpose.

Sources: FRA: GXAPS purpose and limitations.

The 2016 FRA list counted past incidents.

FRA's 2016 release identified crossings with 10 or more incidents over the preceding decade. That was a count for a defined past period, not a finding about every crossing's present safety.

Do not reuse a historical list with a current-year headline. Changes in equipment, roads, rail operations and reporting can affect what a past total tells you now.

Sources: FRA: what the 2016 incident list measured.

Traffic and site conditions need to be read together.

Traffic determines how often road users and rail movements may meet. Warning equipment, crossing angle and nearby road intersections also matter, including coordination between road and crossing warnings.

An incident count without those conditions is incomplete. A larger count at a busy location and no reports at a quieter one do not establish which is safer for a particular person today.

Sources: FRA: what the 2016 incident list measured; FRA crossing toolkit.

Read what warning equipment can tell you.

Look up one crossing and check its dates.

Start with the crossing ID, then read road traffic, train counts, warning equipment, incident coverage and record history. Note old counts and unreported fields.

If a predicted value is present, retain its model and period and read the agency's caveat alongside it. A value is not a forecast that an event will occur on a particular day.

Sources: FRA: GXAPS purpose and limitations.

Understand FRA's predicted annual values.

Ask for a review of a specific concern.

Describe the location and what needs attention, such as a sight-line issue or traffic queuing near the tracks. Send dated observations to the responsible road authority or state crossing program.

For an immediate hazard, use the blue sign's railroad contact and 911 when needed. A research page is not a live condition assessment.

Sources: FRA: emergency notification signs.

Learn how crossings are considered for improvements.