# Trains, teens, suicides



## CHamilton (Dec 13, 2012)

We've seen way too many stories like this one.

Photographer Killed While Taking Pictures of an Oncoming Train

That one seems even more stupid than most. And also today, we see another well-meaning article trying to figure out what it all means.

Pedestrian Deaths on Railroad Tracks: The Failure of Design

But last night, I heard a presentation from the Youth Suicide Prevention Program, which included some pretty shocking statistics. And while organizations like Operation Lifesaver do excellent work, they aren't focused on people who use trains as vehicles for suicide.

As train advocates, we need to support groups that are working to reduce the number of people -- in high-risk groups like victims of bullying -- who will want to use trains to kill themselves. In addition to the tragic consequences for families, friends, communities, and rail workers, reducing such incidents means that those who don't like trains will have fewer reasons for restricting train operations.

I encourage you, as part of your year-end charitable giving, to support organizations that work with kids and others to prevent suicides. And don't forget to send checks to the national and local rail advocacy groups.


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## CHamilton (Dec 14, 2012)

BNSF train strikes, kills person near Tacoma



> BNSF Railway says a person is dead after being struck by one of its freight trains near Tacoma, Wash.
> Railroad spokesman Gus Melonas...says the train was traveling from Seattle to Portland when it hit a person trespassing on BNSF Railway property about three miles south of Tacoma, in the Titlow Beach area.
> 
> Melonas says the incident shut down the line for about two hours and delayed two trains. There were no injuries to the train crew.
> ...


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## Trogdor (Dec 14, 2012)

CHamilton said:


> As train advocates, we need to support groups that are working to reduce the number of people -- in high-risk groups like victims of bullying -- who will want to use trains to kill themselves.


FTFY.


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## Swadian Hardcore (Dec 15, 2012)

These deaths are getting very annoying. We need to try to stop them. There are just so many people killed by trains these days.


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## Texan Eagle (Dec 15, 2012)

Swadian Hardcore said:


> These deaths are getting very annoying. We need to try to stop them. There are just so many people killed by trains these days.


Also guns. Guns kill way too many innocent people for no fault of them. We need to stop them first.


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## leemell (Dec 15, 2012)

Texan Eagle said:


> Swadian Hardcore said:
> 
> 
> > These deaths are getting very annoying. We need to try to stop them. There are just so many people killed by trains these days.
> ...


Please leave guns off this topic. It is far to volitile a topic and not is not part of this thread.


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## Shortline (Jan 7, 2013)

Texan Eagle said:


> Swadian Hardcore said:
> 
> 
> > These deaths are getting very annoying. We need to try to stop them. There are just so many people killed by trains these days.
> ...


Mostly perception. Fatalities by both trains, and guns, has been trending down over the last couple of decades. The number of incidents hasn't increased, and is actually lower, but the number of headlines, and the sensationalism of some of the recent events makes one more aware of the events. Gotta love the 24 hour news cycle. But, in any event, I agree, one train death is too many. Stay off, stay away, stay alive.


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## shinkansen (Jan 10, 2013)

Will spare the obligatory Operation Lifesaver commentary. OLI made some decent steps about a decade ago to branch in to trespassing and pedestrian safety issues as a result of the success from 30 years of Look Listen Live campaign. But it seems that this has been a greater challenge within OLI to get the message out than it was with the 3L program. Common sense would tell you, "big train, little person, squish" but I do not know about people anymore. It seems like each decade, human situational awareness is decreasing.


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## Devil's Advocate (Jan 10, 2013)

Shortline said:


> Texan Eagle said:
> 
> 
> > Swadian Hardcore said:
> ...


How exactly does one go about "sensationalizing" the deliberate murder of innocent children?


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## TimePeace (Jan 10, 2013)

shinkansen said:


> It seems like each decade, human situational awareness is decreasing.


I agree. I think wearing earbuds with music cranked up while walking is a sign of that. I have seen kids almost get run over on the street because they couldn't hear a vehicle approaching. And not so long ago, there was a story posted/linked here about a teenager killed by a train - and he had his ipod or whatever playing at the time...

That is not suicide, it's fatal lack of awareness.


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## CHamilton (Sep 4, 2013)

A fatal trend: N.J. train deaths have increased since state launched safety initiative



> Spurred by the deaths of three teenage boys on the train tracks in a 24-hour period in 2011, the state Department of Transportation and NJ Transit redoubled safety efforts.
> The agencies extended fencing, stepped up patrols and placed new warning signs at stations. They increased education in schools and filmed hard-hitting public service announcements, one of them bluntly titled "You’re Dead."
> They even took to social media, targeting kids and adults alike with the message that a train is a brutally efficient killer.
> But more than a year after that safety initiative was launched, the deaths continue to mount. Worse, they have accelerated.
> ...


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## Anderson (Sep 4, 2013)

Sounds like a prime example of the law of unintended consequences. The campaign may well have reduced _accidental_ deaths (no way to judge without more information on that front), but putting up signs that advertise the lethal nature of trains is likely to have the opposite effect on suicidal people.


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## Swadian Hardcore (Sep 4, 2013)

Anderson said:


> Sounds like a prime example of the law of unintended consequences. The campaign may well have reduced _accidental_ deaths (no way to judge without more information on that front), but putting up signs that advertise the lethal nature of trains is likely to have the opposite effect on suicidal people.


That's ture, most suicidal people seem foolishly determined to die. As good as the train is, it's probably the most efficient "killer" out of the "common" modes of transport. Maybe advertising the opposite would work to some effect, but most people know that a train *will* kill you very quickly.


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## NW cannonball (Sep 7, 2013)

Now the grauniad is picking up on this issue. A Brit viewpoint


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