Gracie WarhurstThe city of West Palm Beach, Florida, has adopted a Rail Safety and Functionality for Everyone (S.A.F.E.) program, the first of its kind in the region. The policy resolution establishes a goal of reducing deaths and serious injury due to rail trespassing and accidents.
Rail S.A.F.E. was launched by a traffic and transportation engineering firm in Delray Beach, Florida. The initiative focuses on education, enforcement, engineering and engagement to achieve zero fatalities on railroad tracks.
To meet this goal, the city plans to implement road design standards, infrastructure improvements, public engagement and policy changes to prevent trespassing on rail rights-of-way and train crashes involving other vehicles. If approved, two federal grants and matches from the city, totaling over $25 million, would fund this program.
Under the program, West Palm Beach is planning four projects to improve rail infrastructure. The city wants to remove rail crossings on multiple streets as well as make improvements like additional traffic signals, bike lanes, pedestrian paths and landscaping. Design and construction phases are planned from FY2024 to FY2028.
In 2022, 511 people were killed and 475 injured in railroad trespassing incidents in the U.S. Any municipality can take the steps to become a Rail S.A.F.E. community by looking at sample policies and taking the pledge.
