Brightline grade crossing incidents

[BlazeRip]

It's the south Florida effect. Lots of reckless, impatient people. Just try driving down there, you'll be.......scared. It actually seems worse now than before when I lived there. I just spent a week there visiting friends - I enjoyed my stay and seeing them but I was very glad to leave. North of Orlando, people drive more normally. South of Orlando, you'd better watch out.

-But I digress- back to the trains!

It's not just Brightline it happens to; in the many years I worked at MIA, quite a few of my co-workers living in Broward or Palm Beach would take Tri-rail to and from the airport because traffic is always a nightmare. They were late fairly frequently due to Tri-rail hitting something. Or someone. This happened to Amtrak too, with obviously less frequency due to only two trains. Interestingly, as far as I remember, this was not as much a factor with the freight trains; but Brightline and Tri-rail, with many trains a day, are most likely to be affected.


Thank you, sir!

As few times as I ride tri rail I had that experience. A car was hit so we had to route around the accident on busses. Normally I prefer tri rail to the nightmare that is I95 for getting down to Miami.

 

[rookzie]

Nº1

Brightline has 328 grade crossings in about 190 miles apparently.

Nº2

It's the south Florida effect. Lots of reckless, impatient people. Just try driving down there, you'll be.......scared. It actually seems worse now than before when I lived there. I just spent a week there visiting friends - I enjoyed my stay and seeing them but I was very glad to leave. North of Orlando, people drive more normally. South of Orlando, you'd better watch out.

....

It's not just Brightline it happens to; in the many years I worked at MIA, quite a few of my co-workers living in Broward or Palm Beach would take Tri-rail to and from the airport because traffic is always a nightmare. They were late fairly frequently due to Tri-rail hitting something. Or someone. This happened to Amtrak too, with obviously less frequency due to only two trains. Interestingly, as far as I remember, this was not as much a factor with the freight trains; but Brightline and Tri-rail, with many trains a day, are most likely to be affected.

Nº3

Brightline runs along streets very close to tracks. US1 many places. Those street do not allow for mch distance to get off tracks. FTA shoule dedicate funds to istall smart traffic light signals at thoses crossings.

Nº4

Don't recall the source, but I have seen that Florida has the highest rate of suicides in the nation. The writer posited that, since a much higher proportion than elsewhere of these were in the 70+ age range that loneliness and declining health were major factors, since many of these were transplants that had no nearby family having moved to sunny climes after retirement. It is possible that suicide by train may be a factor in this high number of grade crossing collisions. This consideration would also explain why South Florida would have more of this than the rest of the state. "Suicide by cop" as practiced by some is harder to achieve when you are old and slow.

Each of these responses factor into the equation of Brightline incidents at level (grade) crossings. They also have occurred at locations not at crossings, often due to inattentiveness of pedestrians who shortcut with headphones and ear-buds. This has happened several times in less than 3 years along tracks in middle Tennessee, including the route of the modest (if not measly) offerings of Nashville's WeGo Star commuter train, which also has claimed at least one probable suicide. It has been reported that accounts of probable suicides have been frequent in the Northeast as well, such as with NJTransit, but many of those have occurred on grade-separated tracks ─ more common in the Northeast than in Florida.

Along the subject Florida route segments, which pass through almost contiguous populated areas, the number of crossings (particularly with east-west roadways) per mile is rather high (comparatively speaking), and historically mainline tracks typically have been paralleled by main thoroughfares of US and state highway routes. In Florida's situation with Brightline in particular, not only does the number of crossings per mile for a swiftly moving passenger train come into play, but that leads to another closely related metric ─ the "number of crossings per minute". Specifically, the "Time-Rate" of traversing level (grade) crossings (and any other potential point of incident) translates into a higher probability of impact incidents.

That said, train speed has an intensifying effect, by reduction of response time intervals. In turn, the number of concurrently running Brightline trains becomes a multiplier within the equation. So, statistical counts just have to increase accordingly and significantly.

 

[Qapla]

Quite a number of cities have red lights at intersections closer than "every 6 or 7 city blocks" and yet most people deal with it without running the lights. And when someone does run a light and t-bones someone, we don't blame the driver of the car with the green light.

Why should we blame the rain for car driver's inpatient's?

Likewise, no one seems to be advocating all intersections be converted to non-ground-level intersections

 

[rookzie]

….
….
Likewise, no one seems to be advocating all intersections be converted to non-ground-level intersections

Most of coastal Florida has an elevation of less than 5 meters above sea level — just over 16 feet. While other regions may or may not have grade separated right-of-way (Mid-Atlantic, for example), it would be cost-prohibitive to construct RR underpasses for all or most of those existing level crossings without elevating the existing rail lines to boot.

Closing even some of those crossings could and probably would only add to surface roadway congestion, just as what urban expressways have done since the mid-20th century. Sloping new underpasses at those crossings not only requires provisions for pump-extraction of storm water (as done in Norfolk, Va. at Hampton, Tidewater, and Va. Beach boulevards), but it also would require condemning or partial truncation of many existing properties adjacent to the crossings, in order to safely accommodate the lowering of roadways. Lowering the railroad right-of-way itself — similar to what Reno, NV did — would be too risky for the railroad in such a region.

Perhaps the most topographically feasible alternative would be to build an elevated right-of-way alongside the existing one, but that too would require land acquisition against far too much pushback. It might be feasible to elevate a new rail support structure above the existing tracks without being too disruptive and destructive. That too would be very costly, but that option also might be one of the few possibly tenable ones.

Unlike with segments of the new extension to Orlando, level crossings on the existing runs were inherited from a distant (erstwhile) period. That said, grade separation is the only form of ensuring interference-free operation of higher-speed trains, especially in such a densely intersected region.

 

[Metra Electric Rider]

Perhaps the most topographically feasible alternative would be to build an elevated right-of-way alongside the existing one, but that too would require land acquisition against far too much pushback. It might be feasible to elevate a new rail support structure above the existing tracks without being too disruptive and destructive. That too would be very costly, but that option also might be one of the few possibly tenable ones.

The entire ROW could be decked or viaducted (if that is even a word) and the space underneath used as a linear park, retail or other usable space and eliminate the grade crossings. How much that would cost? Bazillions no doubt.

 

[GDRRiley]

Is there something special about the Brightline route that results in the high number of grade-crossing crashes? How does Brightline compare to other passenger rail corridors with relatively frequent service (Empire Service, Pacific Surfliner, Capitol Corridor, Lincoln Service, South Shore Line, etc.)?

Caltrain is not far behind brightline. Capitol Corridor I believe has the worst record for intercity trains in California.

Well, if there are 328 grade crossings in 190 miles, that would average out to a grade crossing for every 0.58 miles or every 6 or 7 city blocks. That seems like a lot to me, but maybe not a lot within a city.

there are places where every street for 1-2 miles crosses. Closing 1/2 of them would be good but that takes local gov, state DOT and the railroad wanting to do something and accept the likely community backlash

 

[alpha3]

This one somehow got himself stuck under a CSX train and lived.....wow

https://wsvn.com/news/local/miami-d...becoming-trapped-underneath-a-train-in-doral/

 

[west point]

Tri rail had the fortune that many auto grade crossings were eliminated with the I-95 various rebuildings. Cross roads crossings were either eliminated or had flyovers of both I-95 and the Tri rail tracks.

 

[railiner]

The entire ROW could be decked or viaducted (if that is even a word) and the space underneath used as a linear park, retail or other usable space and eliminate the grade crossings. How much that would cost? Bazillions no doubt.

But then you would have the “NIMBY’s” objecting to an “unsightly” elevated structure spoiling their view. In places like NYC, Boston, and San Francisco, and possibly others, they have torn down elevated highways and railways for that reason…

 

[jis]

But then you would have the “NIMBY’s” objecting to an “unsightly” elevated structure spoiling their view. In places like NYC, Boston, and San Francisco, and possibly others, they have torn down elevated highways and railways for that reason…

But the elevated LIRR South Shore Line to Babylon appears to carry on regardless and no one seems to mind it. It all depends on how it is done and how the politics works out. LIRR also has extended elevated segments of the Main Line through Hicksville. And of course the entire NEC through NJ is an elevated grade separated railroad, but I suppose it was elevated long before NIMBYs.

Speaking of tunneling, one of the alternatives for the New River Bridge replacement in Fort Lauderdale is a tunnel. Of course nothing other than cost prevent the line from being placed in a tunnel at critical places either. There are many examples of tunnels through muck. Witness the Hudson River tunnels in New York. They even rise and fall a bit with the tide!

 

[Metra Electric Rider]

My comment was meant to be rather tongue in cheek (not moi!!!). We have a lot of viaducts from the early 20th C in Chicago and some are pretty horrible - the street crossings at the yards which were raised are looong in places and horrible for pedestrians. And flood a lot. But most of the highways that have come down were built on prime sites and were extremely wide - like the examples in SF, Boston and NYC. A four track RR ROW wouldn't be too bad, especially when built at a height that doesn't feel constrained underneath and with a wide structure. Now whether it would be built, don't see that happening anytime soon.

 

[jis]

My comment was meant to be rather tongue in cheek (not moi!!!). We have a lot of viaducts from the early 20th C in Chicago and some are pretty horrible - the street crossings at the yards which were raised are looong in places and horrible for pedestrians. And flood a lot. But most of the highways that have come down were built on prime sites and were extremely wide - like the examples in SF, Boston and NYC. A four track RR ROW wouldn't be too bad, especially when built at a height that doesn't feel constrained underneath and with a wide structure. Now whether it would be built, don't see that happening anytime soon.

I am not sure a four track structure is needed for frequent passenger traffic in Florida. Even the Babylon Line of LIRR is a two track structure which probably carries one of the heaviest commuter traffic in the US. Creating elevated structures for heavy freight trains is a different kettle of fish altogether.

 

[bonzoesc]

I am not sure a four track structure is needed for frequent passenger traffic in Florida. Even the Babylon Line of LIRR is a two track structure which probably carries one of the heaviest commuter traffic in the US. Creating elevated structures for heavy freight trains is a different kettle of fish altogether.

Yeah, I'd guess that one of the busiest rail spots in Florida is NW 8th St and NW 1st Ave in Miami, where we have the two Metrorail tracks (viaduct), three station tracks at Miami Central (Brightline, grade separated on a ramp), and a freight track to the port. The Metrorail for sure needs to be separated (runs every few minutes during rush hour), we're in this thread because Brightline needs to be, but the freight is fine for their frequencies (I think I've seen a train on it three times?)

 

[sitzplatz17]

Looks like Bright Green had a nasty run in with a car carrier truck today:

(looks like the original video i posted got deleted, so here’s a news article that just popped up)
https://wsvn.com/news/local/broward...car-carrier-trailer-in-hollywood-no-injuries/
Service looks to still be suspended at the moment.

 

[user 1215]

Looks like Bright Green had a nasty run in with a car carrier truck today:

Fortunately didn't quite look as nasty as it could have been. No major injuries reported on the train. Unsure about the truck driver.

 

[Qapla]

According to reports, there were no injuries to people on the train or the truck - those cars on the carrier did not escape damage. The flooding in the area due to a massive rainstorm hampered cleanup.

 

[alpha3]

I know there's been a lot of these posted and moron truck drivers are in abundance. But this is somewhat more dramatic and even spectacular, as a car carrier decided to maroon itself on a grade crossing in Hollywood in front of an oncoming Brightline, not doing 100mph but certainly moving along rapidly. Damage not only to stupid truck and its cars but nearby cars and signs.

Brightline train slams into car carrier full of vehicles, causing mess in Hollywood

 

[jis]

I suspect at the time the crash happened it was not going that fast. Afterall it stopped within a few car lengths. Then again, derailment helps decelerate things quicker.

 

[ManganeseFrog]

Not surprisingly down to three 5-car sets today. And I think this incident marks Brightline's first revenue derailment. The fourth axle of #109 and the first axle of the premium car came off.

 

[cirdan]

there are places where every street for 1-2 miles crosses. Closing 1/2 of them would be good but that takes local gov, state DOT and the railroad wanting to do something and accept the likely community backlash

not necessarily backlash.

Many people dislike the traffic and closing off a railroad crossing would make their street into a dead-end street thus reducing traffic.

 

[BlazeRip]

Caltrain is not far behind brightline. Capitol Corridor I believe has the worst record for intercity trains in California.

there are places where every street for 1-2 miles crosses. Closing 1/2 of them would be good but that takes local gov, state DOT and the railroad wanting to do something and accept the likely community backlash

I’m with you, they should push to close many of the minor crossings or build an awful overpass, if feasible

 

[Anderson]

I’m with you, they should push to close many of the minor crossings or build an awful overpass, if feasible

I mean, they should push to build a good overpass if they can...