Trains are touted as the ideal form of transportation; safer than cars and more environmentally-friendly than traveling by plane. High-speed trains and train tracks are under consideration to be built as a method of developing the United States infrastructure and to provide new jobs for the millions of people without work in America today. While new trains and train tracks would no doubt be beneficial, old trains and tracks in operation today are highly self-regulated, are breaking down and lead to nearly 5,000 railroad crossing accidents and 1,000 fatalities each year.

Train accidents at railroad crossings are typically preventable and are a result of the numerous safety violations that Federal investigators and journalists have exposed in the railroad systems. Improperly maintained warning signs and lights at railroad crossings and over-grown vegetation blocking the view of oncoming trains are two highly preventable causes of railroad crossing accidents. Staffing and safety issues, such as overworked or under-trained employees, inattentive or intoxicated engineers, trains traveling too fast and the failure of the engineer to sound the whistle to alert those in the crossing of their approach lead to numerous collisions as well.

Unfortunately, at the moment most railroad equipment is highly outdated and relies on technology developed in the 1930s. The great expense involved in updating the railroads may be beyond what these transportation companies can afford or are willing to spend. Studies show that more than 80% of railroad crossings exposed to the public do not have lights or gates and that more than 50% of railroad crossing accidents occurred at crossings unprotected in this manner. Yet each railroad crossing would cost $150,000 or more to update and so very little is done until multiple lawsuits based on rail road accidents are filed against those responsible for a particular dangerous crossing.

If you have been in an accident involving a train at a railroad crossing, there are many important things you need to know. For example, railroad companies can be held legally liable for any injuries caused by an element considered to be within their control, including railroad crossings. Additionally some railroad crossing lawsuits have a six-month statute of limitations window in which the victim is allowed to file a claim.

Speak to an accident attorney well-versed in claims involving railroad crossing accidents and discuss the options available to you for filing a lawsuit. For example, if a train approaching a railroad crossing did not have its light on and horn blaring, then the engineer and railroad company is considered negligent and legally liable for any accidents, under Federal law. Details such as these, which your lawyer will know to look for, can spell the difference between winning a successful claim and being repaid for your losses or walking away a victim, devastated and financially destroyed.