Amtrak train strikes caused 594 deaths over four years, new report says
Amtrak inspector general says railroad must better manage train-strike risks.
Amtrak trains struck people and occupied vehicles on the tracks about 800 times over a recent four-year period, causing 594 deaths and 279 injuries, a new audit by the national passenger railroad’s inspector general found.
In 2023 alone, an estimated 20% of the company’s locomotive engineers were involved in such a crash.
The Office of Inspector General recommended Amtrak better assess risks of future crashes, identify the most dangerous crossings or stretches — and take steps to make them safer.
Earlier this month, the magnitude of train strikes hit close to home when a father and his two sons were killed when a southbound Amtrak train hit them near the Bristol SEPTA station.
The Bucks County coroner ruled that Thomas Cramp, 24, died by suicide. The deaths of his brother David Cramp, 31, and father, Christopher Cramp, 56, were ruled accidental.
The Bristol collision was not included in the inspector general report, which looked at train strikes over four years from fiscal year 2020 through fiscal year 2023. It was mentioned in the introduction to the report, which was released Wednesday.
Amtrak has made strides at combating the problem, such as extensive safety awareness campaigns in conjunction with the industry’s Operation Lifesaver and with groups representing truckers and agriculture. It also has begun compiling a “hazard index” based on past incidents, traffic counts, train speeds, and other factors — but it focuses on grade crossings and does not deal with people who are on the tracks elsewhere, the report said.
But the railroad’s efforts have been mostly reactive, the report said. It should track past train strikes and near misses along routes, including track areas that are not near vehicle crossings, the report said.
The company also should:
Make rights-of-way less accessible by using fencing or other barriers.
Increase visibility on rights-of-way by removing obstacles that block the view of trespassers and train crews.
Make greater use of technology such as drones and AI to identify trespassers on tracks and alert local police and operators of approaching trains.
Having solid information and risk assessments would help Amtrak pinpoint the best locations for deploying scarce resources such as fencing, signs, and other interventions, the IG said.
The company operates on about 21,000 miles of track across 46 states and the District of Columbia; its trains pass through more than 17,000 grade crossings.
It controls most of the tracks in the Northeast Corridor from Boston to Washington, along with a small section in Michigan and Indiana. Other railroads own about 97% of the track the company uses in other parts of the country.
The report noted that the problem is challenging for railroads because they have little or no control over troubled people on the tracks, people who have trespassed to walk along the right-of-way, and motorists who ignore crossing signals.
Amtrak officials accepted the recommendations and committed to implementing them.