Indiana Department of Transportation

10/1/2010

The Rail Safety Improvement Act of 2008 directed the Secretary of Transportation to identify the 

ten States that have had the most highway-rail grade crossing collisions, on average, over the 

past three years. The Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) identified the ten States with the 

most reported highway-rail grade crossing incidents during the years 2006, 2007, and 2008, to 

be: Alabama, California, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Louisiana, Ohio, and Texas. 

Consequently, Indiana is required to create this action plan to identify specific solutions for 

improving safety at crossings.

Unless superseded by federal code or regulatory action this document remains in effect for a 

period of five years from the date of FRA approval.
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Table of Contents 

INTRODUCTION ....................................................................................................................................................... 3

PLAN SUMMARY ...................................................................................................................................................... 6

PROBLEM IDENTIFICATION ................................................................................................................................. 8

ENGINEERING .......................................................................................................................................................... 9

Public Highway-Rail Grade Crossing Control/Closure .................................................................................. 9

Grade Separation ................................................................................................................................................... 9

Crossing Safety Improvements ............................................................................................................................ 9

Train-Activated Warning Enhancements ...................................................................................................... 9

Passive Warning Enhancements ...................................................................................................................10

Crossings with multiple crashes ........................................................................................................................11

EDUCATION ............................................................................................................................................................ 13

Review Indiana‟s Driver Manual.......................................................................................................................13

Communications Outreach................................................................................................................................. 13

ENFORCEMENT ......................................................................................................................................................14

Evaluate Emerging Technologies & Tactics .....................................................................................................14

Publish a Law Enforcement and First Responders Guide .............................................................................14

Establish Accredited Law Enforcement Crossing Training ...........................................................................14

DATA AND ADMINISTRATION .........................................................................................................................15

Compile and Analyze Crossing Crash Data ....................................................................................................15

Identify Rail Corridors for Programmatic Crossing Improvement .............................................................. 15

Improve Railroad Data........................................................................................................................................15

Seek Innovative Countermeasures ....................................................................................................................16

Statewide Coordination ......................................................................................................................................16

Table 1 Key Action Items ........................................................................................................................................... 7

Table 2 Recent Crash Performance ........................................................................................................................... 8

Table 3 Crash Performance by Warning Device..................................................................................................... 8

Table 4 Potential Engineering Countermeasure Options ....................................................................................12

Table 5 Crashes by Major Contributor and warning device ...............................................................................16
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Indiana officially adopted the state motto of “The Crossroads of America” in 1937. However, it 

was in the 19th century, 100 years before the Interstate Highway System came into being that the 

term first became associated with Indiana, because of the many canals, railroads and roadways 

that crossed our state. States and communities typically built the highway system of the 20th

century at grade across the rail systems of the 19th century that today leaves thousands of grade 

crossings in the 21st century that would not be built today. 

Many of the nation‟s busiest rail lines continue to travel across Indiana to and from the nation‟s 

largest rail freight hub located in Chicago, Illinois. In the 21st century, this convergence of 

railroads and highways means that Indiana has about 6,000 public pedestrian and highway 

railroad grade crossings, which is more than all but four other states. 

Statewide, forty-three railroads operate over more than 5,300 miles of track. Freight lines carry in 

excess of 311- million tons of freight annually, serving ports and intermodal terminals across 

Indiana. Several freight railroads have recently upgraded major corridors for high-speed freight 

traffic. Changes in the operating strategies of freight railroads have resulted in more and longer 

trains concentrated on fewer route miles. Additionally, there is frequent service on AMTRAK 

routes in the northwest corridor counties and the Cardinal/Hoosier State Amtrak passenger 

route crosses the state from the northwest to southeast several times a week. In addition, tourist 

excursion trains operate on variable schedules at different times of the year. 

As illustrated on the Indiana Rail System Map, only Switzerland and Ohio counties have no 

crossings. The 12 counties highlighted in red each contribute more than 2% of the total number of 

crossings in the state. Together, they comprise roughly one third of all Indiana crossings. The 27 

counties highlighted in orange each contribute 1% to 2% of the total crossings in the state. 

Together, they comprise roughly the second third of total crossings. The 51 counties highlighted 

in yellow encompass the remaining third of the state‟s crossings, each contributing less than 1% 

of the state‟s total crossings.

The rail and highway system in Indiana is busy with the greatest concentration of conflicting 

railroad and highway traffic concentrated in the five northwest counties of Lake, Porter, La Porte, 

St. Joseph and Elkhart. Together, these counties account for 15% of all crossings in the state. This 

corridor is subject to heavy freight traffic, high-speed Amtrak passenger service along with 

frequent Northern Indiana Commuter Transportation District electric commuter train service 

operating between Chicago and South Bend. The great numbers of highway-rail conflict points 

across Indiana often produce a volume of crashes that rank it among the states with the most 

grade crossing crashes. 
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Note: 

In its methodology to identify the states required to produce a grade crossing action plan the 

FRA looked at all crashes including public and private crossings. This plan is limited in its scope 

to address only grade crossings located on highways, roads and streets maintained by a public 

authority. Privately owned roads or driveways leading into factories or onto farm fields are 

private crossings and operate under agreements between individual landowners and railroad 

companies. Presently, Indiana has no authority to regulate such crossings nor can it spend state 

or federal funds on their improvement. Consequently, throughout this document any reference to 

a “crossing” means a public highway-rail grade crossing. 

From a safety perspective, the current treatment of private crossings is becoming increasingly 

problematic. This may be best illustrated by the challenges presented by High Speed Rail (HSR) 

corridors. Currently under evaluation by the FRA are proposed safety principles such as: 

Eliminating redundant crossings and those that can‟t be made safe

Installing state of the art traffic control/warning devices compatible with the location for train 

speeds between 80 and 110 mph 

Protecting rail movements with full width highway barriers or grade separation where train 

speeds are above 110 mph 

Private crossings on high-speed rail corridors will also require these treatments before highspeed service can be initiated. The FRA is expected to provide guidance to supplement existing 

regulations with respect to highway-rail grade crossings for use in funding HSR projects. 
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INDIANA RAIL SYSTEM 2008
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The intent of this safety action plan is to help ensure safe and efficient travel for all highway users 

and railroads. It serves as an annually reviewed implementation component of the Indiana 

Strategic Highway Safety Plan and provides for the ongoing analysis and identification of issues 

affecting safety at crossings across the state. 

The plan draws upon engineering, enforcement and educational components to devise means to 

prevent crashes at crossings. Shared duty and partnerships are important elements in reducing 

highway fatalities in Indiana. Better communication, coordination and cooperation between state, 

federal, regional and local agencies as well as with railroads, rail safety organizations are vital to 

successful implementation and deployment of strategies intended to keep the public highwayrail grade crossing portion of Indiana‟s transportation network operating safely and efficiently. 

This plan seeks to include input from roadway users, railroad companies, local law enforcement 

agencies, local highway agencies and other stakeholders. Central to a multi-disciplinary approach 

to identifying and addressing problem areas are the INDOT Office of Traffic Safety and Rail 

Office, the Indiana Criminal Justice Institute, Indiana State Police, Indiana Operation Lifesaver, 

the Federal Railroad and Highway Administrations. Collectively, these organizations will review 

current practice while exploring emerging concepts to continually improve safety and reduce 

collisions at crossings across Indiana, broadly employing three disciplines. 

Engineering activities that design, construct and maintain cost-effective crossings safety 

treatments is fundamental to reducing crashes. 

Education of drivers, pedestrians, law enforcement and emergency response personnel 

about the dangers at crossings is vital to improve user behavior at crossings. 

Enforcement of traffic laws is fundamental to ensuring compliance by drivers and 

pedestrians to existing laws and traffic control devices at crossings. 

The goal of this plan is to continue and accelerate if possible the downward trend in the 

occurrence of crossing crashes regardless of causation. Sadly, any safety action plan is not likely 

to eliminate all crashes, injuries and deaths at crossings because crashes usually involve multiple 

contributing factors. Despite the combined best efforts of federal and state agencies, railroad 

companies and private organizations, we recognize that risky behaviors on the part of drivers or 

pedestrians cannot be entirely eliminated or mitigated. 
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Table 1 Key Action Items 

# Item 1 

Year

> 1 

Year Ongoing

1 Participate in OLI Public Awareness & Media Plan X

2 Review Drivers Manual With Bureau of Motor Vehicles X

3 Evaluate Emerging Enforcement Technologies and Tactics X

4 Evaluate Emerging Innovative Countermeasures X

5 Improve ARIES-FRA Database Compatibility X

6 Expedite passive crossing MUTCD compliance upgrades X

7 Publish Law Enforcement Crossing Guide X

8 Create Training With Indiana Law Enforcement Academy X

9 Define and Identify Corridor Improvement Priorities X

10 Conduct Regular Statewide Coordination X
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To ensure consistency in crash evaluation, the data used to analyze crossings comes from the 

FRA grade crossing collision reports (FRA - Form 6180.57) and the FRA National Grade Crossing 

Inventory. The INDOT Office of Traffic Safety extracted highway-rail grade crossing data for the 

years of 2000 through 2009 to examine in preparation of this action plan. 

Table 2 Recent Crash Performance 

2000-2009 (10-YR) 2005-2009 (5-YR) 2007-2009 (3-YR)

Crashes 1,459 665 365

Crossings 1001 518 312

Multiple Crash Crossings 283 106 43

Counties with at least one crash 80 73 60

County ranking by number of crashes (% of State total)

1 LAKE (16.0%) LAKE (17.7%) LAKE (17.5%)

2 MARION (6.4%) MARION (5.7%) ST JOSEPH (6.6%)

3 ST JOSEPH (5.0%) ST JOSEPH (5.4%) MARION (6.3%)

4 LA PORTE (4.7%) LA PORTE (5.0%) LA PORTE (4.7%)

5 ELKHART (4.2%) ELKHART (4.8%) ELKHART (4.4%)

6 DELAWARE (3.9%) DELAWARE (4.7%) KNOX (3.8%)

7 VIGO (3.6%) VIGO (3.6%) DELAWARE (3.6%)

8 ALLEN (3.4%) MADISON (3.5%) VIGO (3.3%)

9 MADISON (3.3%) KNOX (2.9%) MADISON (3.0%)

10 GIBSON (2.9%) GIBSON (2.6%) GIBSON (2.7%)

Data indicates that two out of three crashes occurred at crossings with train-activated warning 

devices already in place. 

Table 3 Crash Performance by Warning Device 

2000-2009 (10-YR) 2005-2009 (5-YR) 2007-2009 (3-YR)

Flashing Lights & Gates 507 248 128

Flashing Lights 371 159 73

WW,HTS, Bells, Other 10 3 1

Cross Bucks 264 87 39

Stop Signs 219 81 37
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The safest public highway-rail grade crossing is no crossing at all. That is why INDOT seeks to 

curtail the construction of new crossings, and actively seeks the consolidation of crossings where 

it is feasible and reasonable to do so. INDOT will evaluate nearby crossings for closing whenever 

it invests in a project to upgrade warning devices or that involves an existing or new grade 

separation. 

The INDOT Rail Office applies a portion of the Railroad Grade Crossing Fund to an ongoing 

program to encourage permanent closing of redundant crossings. The Rail Office manages this 

program as a lump sum payment to communities upon the closing of a public highway-rail grade 

crossing. The municipality is permitted to use the funds for any public purpose. The award 

amount is determined by the predicted crash rate for the closed crossings and typically ranges 

from $20,000 to $60,000. 

Short of closing, grade separation, constitutes the only perfect solution to eliminate the hazards 

inherent in grade crossings. However, due to the high costs of construction, right of way and 

environmental mitigation, INDOT only considers grade separation in instances where high 

volumes or high speeds of both roadway and rail traffic make grade crossings of any warning 

level undesirable. This plan seeks to identify crossings that may benefit from grade separation. 

The INDOT Office of Traffic Safety administers the federal aid highway-rail crossing program 

under United States Code Title 23, Section 130. The goal of this safety fund, commonly referred to 

as „Section 130‟, is to improve the safety of the most hazardous crossings in the State of Indiana. 

INDOT typically uses Section 130 funds to install train-activated warning device improvements 

and does not require matching funds for projects from local government authorities. With the 

current level of federal funding, the number of Section 130 crossing upgrades achievable 

annually in Indiana is about 25-30 projects per year to provide upgrade from passive to active 

warning or improvements to existing active devices including installation of constant warning 

time circuitry. It also funds the replacement of obsolete equipment such as constant flashing red 
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lights or warning bells only. In selected cases, upgrade to four quadrant gate warning or 

installation of median barrier will be pursued. 

INDOT maintains documentation of the hazard analysis and project selection process for Section 

130. This plan will influence future modifications of that process. 

The primary INDOT program assisting with funding of passive warning improvements is the 

Railroad Grade Crossing Fund administered by the INDOT Rail Office as a cost reimbursement. 

Towns, cities and counties are eligible to apply and local matching funds are not required. Class 

II and III railroads and port authorities operating a railroad also may apply, however some items 

may require a matching contribution. This program provides upgrades such as advance signage, 

pavement markings, night-time illumination, upgrading flashing lights from incandescent to 

LED devices as well as surface improvements. 

While 23 CFR 646.206 permits use of Section 130 funds for the installations of standard signs and 

pavement markings, Indiana has traditionally reserved section 130 funds for projects that add or 

improve train activated warning devices. However, the 2009 Manual of Uniform Traffic Control 

Devices (MUTCD) requires changes in signage at all public passive crossings. MUTCD section 

8B.04 directs that all cross buck assemblies also carry YIELD or STOP Signs by December 31, 

2019. To accelerate these improvements, INDOT will explore using contributions of section 130 

funds on a 50-50 cost sharing basis toward a railroad company‟s upgrade of passive crossing 

signage to meet the new requirement. 

INDOT will enter into an agreement with CSX Transportation Corporation to upgrade all of the 

passive public crossings on its Indiana trackage (~660 crossings). This project will develop the 

necessary implementation process as well as evaluate the benefits of such agreements with the 

intent of offering them programmatically to all railroads operating in Indiana with the goal of 

exceeding the deadline requirements of the 2009 MUTCD for deploying the new standard 

passive warning devices. 

In addition, in INDOT‟s Local Highway Safety Improvement Program Project Selection Guidance 

for projects submitted for calls after July 1, 2010, local public agencies may apply for funding of 

projects to install (after agreement with the railroad owner) new cross buck assemblies in 

compliance with the 2009 MUTCD at grade crossings currently equipped with only passive 

warning devices. Improvements are preferable at crossings of short lines and regional railroads. 

Installing improvements on a rail corridor rather than at „spot‟ locations is also preferred. 
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Indiana has elected to define a “multiple collision crossing” as a public crossing that has 

experienced two or more FRA reportable crashes within five years. As part of the INDOT Office 

of Traffic Safety ongoing monitoring of highway-rail crashes, the Section 130 program manager 

and the INDOT Rail Office quickly review all grade crossing crash police reports (at public or 

private crossings) and the corresponding inventory record and crash history for the crossing 

involved as soon as a crash is reported. INDOT takes additional steps in cases where the crossing 

is on a public roadway and has a crash on record during the previous sixty months. 

As soon as the police crash report is available, the findings of the investigating officer(s) as to the 

contributing factors in the crash will be the first consideration as to the scope and schedule of 

engineering or regulatory activities. 

Where the findings of the investigating officer indicate inappropriate driver behavior such as 

driving around road closed barriers, suicide, flight from law enforcement, or the abandonment of 

a vehicle that is not disabled results in a FRA reportable crash; INDOT has the option of not 

pursuing any engineering or regulatory action. This applies regardless of the protective devices 

in place at the highway rail crossing. 

Where a police crash report indicates a vehicle became stuck in the driving lanes of a crossing 

equipped with train-activated warning devices that were functioning at the time of the crash 

regardless of other behavioral contributors, at minimum INDOT will conduct a regulatory 

inspection of the crossing. 
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In other cases, INDOT will conduct an on-site inspection as soon as practicable to determine if 

there are traffic control devices, railroad warning devices or environmental conditions that 

should be quickly added, enhanced or modified. 

Table 4 Potential Engineering Countermeasure Options 

Existing 

Condition

Possible enhancements

Passive Add 2009 MUTCD compliant devices 

Change to “Stop” condition - (only after completion of an engineering study)

Pavement markings, advance signage, illumination

Code enforcement (Clear brush, etc)

Sec. 130 Add Flashing Lights and Gates, Overhead Cantilever, Bell , Constant 

Warning Time circuitry

Road Safety Audit

Flashing Lights 

only

Pavement markings, advance signage

Code enforcement (Clear brush, etc)

Sec. 130 Add gates, Overhead Cantilever, Constant Warning Time circuitry

Road Safety Audit

Flashing lights 

plus gates

Pavement markings, advance signage

Code enforcement (Clear brush, etc)

Sec. 130 Add Overhead Cantilever, Constant Warning Time circuitry, 

upgrade old equipment, approach median barrier, Four-Quadrant gates

Grade Separation

Road Safety Audit

At any point in the evaluation, the INDOT Traffic Safety Office may opt to conduct a full Road 

Safety Audit to aid in determining a comprehensive response of engineering, education and 

enforcement activities to address the crash problem. 

The final documentation for the investigations consists of internal INDOT documents such as: 

1. Field check minutes -or2. E-mail correspondence regarding the police crash report 

No formal engineering report is anticipated or required for multiple collision crossing 

investigations and there is no requirement to report findings to the FRA. In all cases, INDOT will 

communicate with the railroad involved, local law enforcement, the roadway owner and 

Operation Lifesaver Indiana regarding the status of actions at multiple collision crossings. 
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INDOT will collaborate with the Indiana Bureau of Motor Vehicles regularly to evaluate the 

Indiana driver manual and driving test with the intent of improving crossing safety education. 

For example, add text on four-quadrant gate installations, what is expected of drivers at crossings 

protected only by flashing lights, information on reporting crashes at crossings, malfunctioning 

signals or hazardous spills and what to do if your car stalls on RR tracks. Discussion will include 

adding questions on any new information to the driver written test. 

Improve state agency involvement in Operation Lifesaver activities by training state employees 

as OLI presenters and provide in-kind support to OLI activities such as coordinating statewide 

safety messages with OLI and participation in “Rail Safety Week” activities.

Target media messages to address high crash corridors or to groups over-represented in crash 

data. 

The team will assist in preparation of articles concerning highway-rail safety programs for 

publication in the Local Technology Assistance Program (LTAP) newsletter to reach more local 

officials. In cooperation with Operation Lifesaver and the Indiana Broadcasters Association, the 

state will participate in public service campaigns, along with identification of regional “hot 

spots” focusing safety information targeted to influence local motorists and pedestrians most at 

risk for crossing crashes. 

Outreach through communication vehicles such as the LTAP newsletter is one way that INDOT 

encourages local agencies to engage in highway-rail grade crossing safety improvements 

independent of state assistance. INDOT can only advance 25-30 Section 130 projects a year at the 

current level of funding. With just over 4,000 ungated crossings across the state, local agencies 

should not wait for INDOT funding involvement. Nothing in Indiana law prevents counties, 

cities and towns from entering into agreements with railroads for the placement of train-activated 

warning devices at crossings on roads under their jurisdiction if the municipal entity agrees to 

pay the installation cost.
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The state will seek involvement from the Indiana State Police and local law enforcement agencies 

to explore tactics that will increase motorist and pedestrian compliance with applicable traffic 

safety laws through targeted enforcement. Additionally, the team will evaluate the use of 

railroad supplied “close-call” reports and/or detection devices at crossings with a history of 

driver violations and risky behavior to aid in targeted enforcement activities. 

In cooperation with Operation Lifesaver, the Indiana Criminal Justice Institute and the Indiana 

Law Enforcement Training Board, compile, publish and regularly update information to educate 

Indiana law enforcement officers and first responders about safely and effectively conducting 

enforcement or emergency response activities at crossings and on railroad right of way. The 

guide will summarize state laws pertaining to crossings and railroad right of way to help in 

effective law enforcement activities. It will also provide a checklist of specific information to 

collect at the scene of crossing crashes to aid the preparation of Indiana Traffic Crash Reports and 

to conduct a crash investigation effectively. It will provide a listing of emergency contact 

information for all railroads operating in Indiana. 

In cooperation with the Indiana Law Enforcement Training Board, establish a regular schedule of 

in-service training courses to provide accredited law enforcement continuing education hours for 

grade crossing collision investigation courses at the basic (4-hour), intermediate (8-hour) and 

advanced (16-hour) levels as developed by Operation Lifesaver and the International Association 

of Chiefs of Police. 
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INDOT will conduct regular analysis of crossing crash reports to identify trends and to evaluate 

the effectiveness of countermeasures. Since 2003, the Automated Reporting Information 

Exchange System (ARIES) has hosted Indiana‟s database of all motor vehicle crash reports 

transmitted to the Indiana State Police. The Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) Office of 

Safety Analysis rail-highway grade crossing crash data provides a more complete picture of 

crossing incidents than ARIES because non-motor vehicle crashes involving trains (pedestrians, 

bicyclists, etc.) are not reported on Indiana traffic crash reports. Even so, ARIES data provides 

valuable information regarding contributing factors that are not captured by FRA incident 

reports. Where information from both databases is available, analysts will pay particular 

attention to identifying contributing factors in various types of crashes, including: 

Contributing factors 

Driver profile 

Types of vehicles 

Types of trains 

Highway and Rail speeds 

Mainline or yard tracks 

Multiple vehicle or train collisions 

Proximity to highway traffic signal 

Crashes are random events; however, the conditions that contribute to the likelihood of crash 

occurrence are measurable. So in addition to monitoring the incidence of crossing crashes, 

INDOT seeks to identify rail corridors where train traffic and/or speeds justify safety 

enhancements at all crossings along its length. In such a corridor approach, consolidation and 

closures of existing crossings are an important component. 

Reconcile differences in crossing inventory data between the FRA, the state and the railroads. 

Incorporate new inventory data being collected that includes aerial and ground photographs and 

attributes that are not part of the current FRA grade crossing inventory database. Public access to 

the enriched crossing inventory is available on the INDOT Web site at: 

http://dotmaps.indot.in.gov/apps/RailCrossings/ 
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Maintain annual update of track ownership transfers, corridor additions and abandonment while 

working toward a system that will dynamically update data in a Geographic Information System 

as trackage status and ownership changes occur. 

All motor vehicle involved FRA crossing incident reports should be matched to Indiana police 

crash reports. An examination of the two databases show that during the six years from 2003 to 

2008, the FRA database shows 859 crashes at public crossings, which includes 38 pedestrian 

crashes. The ARIES database of Indiana motor vehicle crash reports shows 815 motor vehicle 

collisions with trains. ARIES crash reports do not consistently identify crossings by their unique 

grade crossing number. Therefore, analysts must manually examine each report‟s narrative to 

determine if the crash involves a public or private crossing, or, if no crossing was involved such 

as when a vehicle leaves the roadway and strikes a train, or when sideswiping a train where 

roadways and train tracks run concurrently. The team will work with the Traffic Records 

Coordinating Committee to establish a standard procedure for reporting crashes at grade 

crossings. 

Of the Public Grade Crossing Crashes in Indiana reported to the FRA between January 1, 2003 

and December 31, 2008, about 64% (564) were matched to police crash reports and summarized 

for development of this plan. The primary contributor involved in these crashes was 

predominantly driver error (87%). 

Table 5 Crashes by Major Contributor and warning device 

Gates Flashing lights Cross bucks Stop signs Other Total

DRIVER 184 136 80 84 5 489

ENVIRONMENT 11 7 7 7 1 33

VEHICLE 31 5 2 4 0 42

TOTAL 226 148 89 95 6 564

Identify promising safety technologies with potential for application in Indiana. As an example 

the Joint Transportation Research Program is studying interconnects between train-activated 

warning devices and adjacent highway traffic signals. Results of that study should produce a 

standardized approach to signal preemption that realizes performance that is more reliable. 

Seek funding sources and venues to establish a regular conference of some form to engage with 

railroad crossing stakeholders to evaluate safety, explore new strategies and plan future 

activities. The conference can be a venue to discuss: 
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Status reports on the rail system 

Crash analysis identifying emerging issues 

Changes in roles or responsibilities among stakeholders 

Public Communication Activities 

Needs for State or Federal action on laws and regulations