(Washington, D.C.) – U.S. Sen. David Vitter testified today before the House Transportation Subcommittee on Railroads at a hearing on “Railroad Grade Crossing Safety.” Vitter spoke about the bill he introduced in the Senate, S. 1380, the Railroad Safety Improvement Act of 2005.

            “The Railroad Safety Improvement Act will improve the safety of railroad grade crossings in Louisiana and around the country,” said Vitter. “Between closing dangerous crossings and making safety improvements at the remaining ones, we can make the nation’s roads and lives of all families safer. “

            “It has become an all too familiar occurrence: turning on the local news and seeing yet another accident involving a train-car collision at a Louisiana railroad crossing. Unfortunately, the facts are clear: Louisiana has one of the highest rates in the country for railroad crossing collisions and fatalities,” said Vitter.

            In 2004 alone Louisiana had 166 highway-rail grade crossing collisions – the third highest in the country. Louisiana ranked fifth in the number of highway-rail grade crossing fatalities, with 23 deaths in 2004. In 2005 already, Louisiana has had 15 highway-rail crossing fatalities.

            “With this in mind, I introduced S. 1380, the Railroad Safety Improvement Act of 2005 to provide Louisiana and other states with the resources to close dangerous crossings and improve existing crossings to make them safer for our residents. The Railroad Safety Improvement Act will help end the tragic loss of life at railroad crossings by equipping states and local governments with the tools needed to make these crossings safer for their citizens,” Vitter said.

            The Railroad Safety Improvement Act will improve the safety of railroad grade crossings in Louisiana and around the country. The bill requires the U.S. Department of Transportation to work with states and municipalities to close 1 percent of all public and private grade crossings each year for a 10-year period. Priority will be given to closing crossings with insufficient protective equipment and crossings with the most railway-road accidents per mile of railroad track. According to the Louisiana Department of Transportation and Development, 50 Louisiana crossings should be closed.

            The U.S. Secretary of Transportation will award $178 million in federal grants to states for necessary safety improvements to railway-highway crossings through this bill. Funds will be distributed to states that lead the nation in high rates of collision, injuries and fatalities.

            The bill also includes more than $6.7 million for Operation Lifesaver over five years, beginning in fiscal year 2007. Operation Lifesaver is a national education and awareness program with branches in 49 states, including Louisiana, dedicated to ending tragic collisions, fatalities and injuries at highway-rail grade crossings. Operation Lifesaver strives to increase public awareness about the dangers around rail crossings and around railroad tracks. It also promotes active enforcement of traffic laws relating to crossing signs and signals and encourages continued engineering research and innovation to improve the safety of railroad crossings.

            Under this bill, the Department of Transportation would be required to physically inspect at least 2 percent of all railway-road grade crossings in the 10 states with the highest rates of crossing collisions. The Department of Transportation would also be required to conduct an investigation of each major freight railroad company that has been involved in a fatal accident.