Freight Car Reflectorization

By Anya A. Carroll, Jordan Multer, Debra Williams, Melvin A. Yaffee - Download Here

Accidents at the approximately 168,000 public highway-railroad grade crossings in the United States have been documented as a significant safety problem. For example, in 1996 there were 4,257 accidents, which resulted in 1,508 injuries and 487 deaths. One factor that contributes to these figures is the difficulty motorists have in seeing a train consist at a crossing, particularly during dawn, dusk, and darkness (i.e., nighttime conditions), thereby causing an accident in which the motorist’s vehicle runs into the train (or RIT accident). Of the 4,257 accidents in 1996, 967 (22.72% of the total accidents) were RIT accidents; 473 of these 967 (or 11.11% of the total accidents) occurred in nighttime conditions.

In 1981, the FRA supported a study on the potential use of freight car reflectorization to reduce nighttime accidents/incidents at highway-railroad grade crossings. The study concluded that the use of reflective material had its merits, but the degradation of the materials due to the harsh railroad environment required frequent maintenance and/or replacement to deliver long-term, effective performance. The FRA therefore concluded that rulemaking action was not warranted at that time.

Since then, improvements in the brightness, durability, and adhesive properties of reflective materials have been achieved, and a new material, microprismatic corner cube, has been introduced to the market. Additionally, since the initiation of FRA’s current studies (1990) on the use of reflectorization, Congress approved the Swift Rail Development Act of 1994, which includes a section on improving freight car visibility through use of reflective material.