Mac Loc: Pittsburgh, Philadelphia now Hernando Co. Fl.

I don’t know who your comment is directed at, but if it is to me, what difference does that make?

pdsdville Loc: Midlothian, Tx

I've seen lots of videos with near misses because someone was taking photos on the tracks. Don't get so wrapped up in taking the shot that you get smeared. Always be aware of what's going on around you when you are out shooting anywhere.

pj81156 Loc: St. Petersburg, FL

I still don’t get it. Why walk along railroad tracks at all? Across them, yes.

dougbev3 Loc: Pueblo, Colorado

Most people think that the train is very loud and it is when it goes by you ; but ahead of it there is no noise. The last person we hit on a train was a guy that was very drunk about 3am. He was pushing his bike and he lost control of it and fell over it and right into the middle of the track about 30 feet in front of us. We heard the thud. I was in no hurry to go back and see this mess , so I contacted the dispatcher and after everyone was aware of the situation , then I went back. At the time , our train was restricted to be operated at 20mph or less , we were going 16mph. We got stopped just 2 engine lengths from where we hit him. When I got back there, a man was standing leaning against the first car of our train. I asked him if he was ok, but he would not answer me. So I used my lantern and saw he had two feet, two legs, two arms and not bleeding. The police were driving by and could not see us, so I got their attention and they came over. Apparently after falling between the tracks he started to get up which caused the cattle catcher to throw him off the tracks. The man did not want to go to the ER , the police and EMT's lifted up the back of his shirt and he had a bruise from his right back shoulder to his left hip. He then decided to go to the ER. The other stories of hitting a person never turned out like this.

jerryc41 Loc: Catskill Mts of NY

If I'm killed by a train, my relatives aren't going to say, "I'm so embarrassed. Now, the whole world knows that my cousin was a trespasser."

jerryc41 Loc: Catskill Mts of NY

You must have quite a few stories in your arsenal.

Mac Loc: Pittsburgh, Philadelphia now Hernando Co. Fl.

But what if you are not killed? The track areas have many tripping hazards and debris with sharp edges, including broken glass. If you trip and break an ankle or wrist, or bounce your head off the rail, stumble and step on something sharp and slice your foot. Who is going to pay for the medical attention? Not the railroad because you were trespassing. Trespassing is illegal, insurance companies won’t cover injuries that occurred during the commission of a crime.
And beyond all of that, if you were hit by a train and killed, think about the emotional and psychological impact on the train crew.

pj81156 Loc: St. Petersburg, FL

Once again, why is anyone walking on the railroad tracks?

Mr. SONY Loc: LI, NY

People shouldn't be walking on the tracks, yes.
But people need to walk across the tracks.
Just a fact of life.

Klickitatdave Loc: Seattle Washington

Mac Loc: Pittsburgh, Philadelphia now Hernando Co. Fl.

At public crossing points.

Timmers Loc: San Antonio Texas.

A rather interesting 'rule' that is considered a law. That law is on the books in most states, put there by the railroads. But, it has limits. Some will refuse to believe this but there is a real proof. If you visit Roosevelt park, specifically the area that is part of the flood control area and park that is the San Antonio Flood Control facility one will find a railroad bridge that conducts rail traffic through Roosevelt park. Below that railroad bridge is a sidewalk and it contains absolutely NO WARNING signage. That side walk goes directly beneath that railroad bridge. If you look at that bridge's structure it is clear that this structure is extremely old, perhaps as old as when the rail lines were originally constructed. The supporting pylons are vary ancient tree trunks that perhaps as large as 10 feet in diameter.

The train tracks go through the park and go above the sidewalk. Why not simply close the sidewalk? Because in Texas no one can own the bed of a water way and the public must be granted access to a waterway. Or is this all just laziness on the part of the city, county and state. Also, the railroad. Could the sidewalk be kept open and a cover be added to the side walk? Of course this is possible and truly should be done.

How dangerous is having access to the sidewalk that goes under the train bridge? A person can easily be killed by the falling material. The thing is that as long as you stop and stay directly below the bridge you are safe. If you move from this one spot the falling rocks and steel RR spikes can easily kill or injure a person or animals. All around the bridge area one can see and simply pick up metal, stones and rock from the RR bed that has been ejected.

An additional question comes from to one about just how dangerous is the water way that the bridge transverses. Extremely. So much so that during the last renovation of the water way (the San Antonio River, read The River Walk of San Antonio), the City and the River Authority when to great lengths to place huge boulders into the river to make this area of the river impossible to be used as a navigate table area. Did that work? No, the city actually allowed a bunch of idiots to hold a sectioned event for a group of kayakers. They had police and a public official from the city at the even with live music.

So of course I did not let it slide, being a concerned citizen. I found some women with children. I let these women know that the area they were going to be boating in is part of the old section of the city river. I explained that I have property just along that river. That in fact the river is in reality an open sewer.

The women were shocked of course. Someone called one of the cities finest police over and he wanted to know how I was able to know this. I invited him and the city representative up the street to my property and that we could close the city street with the police and lift open the manhole covers any were along the street (Yellowstone) and they could look down into the city drains, and there I guaranteed they would be able to view human waste from the homes along the streets (think, all the prescription drugs and chemicals being flushed into the sewers and that all of this was going right down into the San Antonio River to 'flush' and fester on the beautiful San Antonio River. This is the Southside of San Antonio (land of the Hispanic populations), the area of the San Antonio Missions System and nothing has changed in the way sewers work from tat time. After all, the City can call it South Town and act like everything is terrific, but the truth is that nothing much has changed. It is up to all of us to know the way our government operates, and how reality still is reality.

The idiots can demand that barriers be erected around railroad crossings, but it will not stop deaths and injury. To stop all that one really must have common sense and be aware that your life and your good health can never be legislated. You need to always take responsibility for yourself and your loved ones, and perhaps even for a nabour who is not thinking clearly.

And this is not an attic subject, it is life and what is every persons responsibility to be alive and be aware of the world in which one lives.

Mr. SONY Loc: LI, NY

What is a public crossing point?
A street?

Mac Loc: Pittsburgh, Philadelphia now Hernando Co. Fl.

Yes.

PhotoMono123 Loc: Houston, Texas

"When the gates are all down and the signals are flashin’
The whistle is screamin’ in vain
And you stay on the tracks, ignoring the facts
Well, you can’t blame the wreck on the train"
— Don McLean

I used these lyrics for a banner in my classroom that read, "Don't blame the train." It reminded the kids that the only ones they could blame were themselves.