level crossings

The French railway network has nearly 15,000 level crossings that are open to road traffic, and unfortunately these are the site of more than 1,200 accidents each year. Even though most incidents are not serious, 15% involve collisions between a train and a vehicle or pedestrian, and in 98% of cases this is due to carelessness or incivility.

In 2007, there were 38 deaths and 7 people seriously injured as a result of 115 collisions, although these numbers have been steadily improving over recent years.
 
 

Réseau Ferré de France, with the help of all its partners, has committed to a proactive policy of improving safety at level crossings. Our joint mission is to drastically reduce the number of accidents by 2017. In order to achieve this, we are working simultaneously towards six goals:

Removing level crossings that are a cause for concern (1.8% of level crossings are responsible for 15% of accidents) and building grade-separated crossings instead. Every year, 5-10 crossings are replaced by major structures, railway bridges or road bridges. These complicated projects, the average cost of which is €5 million, need at least 5-6 years of studies, administrative procedures and works.
Improving the safety at level crossings that see repeated incidents, mainly by trying to modify user behaviour (for example preventing drivers from chicaning through crossings by building an island between lanes, reducing the approaching speed limit, and improving visibility of the crossing by installing signal lights with LEDs etc.),
Conducting studies and tests as part of the level crossings research groups in order to identify new solutions,
Conducting public prevention campaigns in order to remind people of the rules (holding public level-crossing accident prevention days, involving the police and highway and local authorities),
Introducing penalties by using automatic penalty controls (level crossing “radars”),
and, of course, avoiding building new level crossings.
 
 

In 2008, Réseau Ferré de France intends to allocate nearly €15 million towards dealing with level crossings. However, this budget increase can only be achieved by working in close collaboration with the State and regional authorities, in order to take into account local expectations, to devise suitable solutions and to co-fund the work. Réseau Ferré de France cannot do it alone: everyone has to care enough to get involved if we are to save lives.
Read the testimonial of Phillippe Feltz, the man in charge of level crossings at Réseau Ferré de France