12 Additional Municipalities Join Operation Lifesaver Canada’s Rail Crossing Safety-Awareness Program

OTTAWA, ON –/COMMUNITYWIRE/– Every year, dozens of Canadians are killed or seriously injured in collisions at railway crossings. Today, as part of Rail Safety Week (September 19-25, 2022), Operation Lifesaver (OL) Canada is pleased to announce that 12 additional communities have joined its “Look. Listen. Live.” Community Safety Partnership Program as a way to prevent these senseless tragedies from happening.

This national initiative encourages municipalities to install rail safety decals on the sidewalks or pavement near railway crossings. Each bright yellow decal features a silhouette of a train as well as OL’s rail safety motto: “Look. Listen. Live.” The decals help to alert pedestrians, cyclists, and motorists of the need to exercise caution around railway crossings—with the aim of preventing tragic incidents from occurring.

“It’s heartbreaking to see Canadians killed or seriously injured in preventable collisions at rail crossings each year,” says Sarah Mayes, National Director of Operation Lifesaver Canada. “Our hope is that these decals will act as a constant reminder for people to be extra vigilant when they’re approaching crossings.”

OL’s first decals were installed in Vancouver, B.C. in 2018. Since then, 80 communities have signed on to the program. In the coming days, dozens of rail safety decals will be unveiled in communities from Burnaby, B.C., to Stellarton, N.S.

The Community Safety Partnership Program is just one of the many ways that OL Canada is working to #STOPTrackTragedies. Earlier this week, OL unveiled four new videos that highlight the personal stories of people affected by rail crossing and trespassing incidents. One of those videos tells the story of 18-year-old Laura Tardif who died after her car was hit by a train at a rail crossing in L’Isle-Verte, Que. in 2014. Laura had been texting a friend while driving and didn’t see or hear the train coming. Her tragic story is precisely the type of incident that OL’s Community Safety Partnership Program is aiming to prevent.

Municipalities can find out more or sign up for the Community Safety Partnership Program by visiting OL’s website.

About Operation Lifesaver Canada

Operation Lifesaver Canada is a national public rail-safety program sponsored by Transport Canada, the Railway Association of Canada and its members, including CN, CP, VIA Rail, Metrolinx, exo, West Coast Express and Genesee & Wyoming, among others. Through its national network of Rail Safety Ambassadors, partnerships with safety councils, police, the trucking industry and community groups, and innovative tools such as its virtual-reality Look. Listen. Live. campaign, Operation Lifesaver Canada works to save lives by educating Canadians about the hazards of trespassing on railway property and failing to exercise caution at rail crossings. Canadians can keep up to date on the latest rail safety news by visiting operationlifesaver.ca.

Contacts

Catherine Henry
chenry@railcan.ca
(613) 564-8100