By Associated Press
Hoover, AL – Train companies and government officials met yesterday (Monday) to discuss making Alabama's railroad crossings safer.
The gathering, billed as the state's first summit on rail crossing safety, came just weeks after five people died in a pair of accidents in the Chilton County town of Thorsby.
But participants said the problem of cars and trucks pulling out in front of trains is statewide.
To help combat the problem, leaders discussed the possibility of closing some little-used crossings that are near other crossings.
Tony Harris, a spokesman for the Alabama Department of Transportation, said a realistic goal might be to close about five percent of the state's 22-hundred unprotected rail crossings within a decade.
The summit also discussed options for stepped-up enforcement to ticket drivers who get too close to trains and publicity campaigns to supplement the work of Operation Lifesaver, which promotes rail safety.
(Copyright 2007 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)