AASHTO Journal - Operation Lifesaver, FHWA Issue Rail Crossing Grants

National advocacy organization Operation Lifesaver Inc. (OLI), in partnership with the Federal Highway Administration, has issued $200,000 in competitive crossing safety awareness grants to rail safety programs in 12 states.

[Above photo by OLI]

The FHWA-funded grants will be awarded to OLI organizations in Alabama, Arizona, Kansas, Louisiana, Maryland, Mississippi, Nebraska, New Jersey, North Carolina, North Dakota, Oregon and South Dakota. This follows a similar package of rail crossing grant awards OLI issued to 10 states in April.

Those grants will be used to support a variety of crossing safety public education projects, in-person events, and public outreach campaigns starting this September and extending through the first quarter of 2025, noted OLI Executive Director Rachel Maleh in a statement.

[Editor’s note: The OLI is also concurrently promoting rail cross safety awareness among school bus drivers as well.]

OLI said the state rail crossing safety projects being funded by this recent round of FHWA-funded grants include:

Alabama will conduct a multifaceted railroad crossing safety education effort, to include digital ads in the top 10 cities for rail traffic and incidents, meetings with city officials and a statewide social media campaign targeting farm audiences during annual “See Tracks? Think Train” campaign September 23-29, along with distributing brochures to farm co-ops and supply stores during the cotton harvest.
Arizona will raise awareness among drivers traveling into Phoenix with a digital billboard campaign from September 2024 through March 2025, including during the state fair in September and October.
Kansas will raise awareness of the importance of making safe choices around tracks and trains for drivers and pedestrians in Wichita through partnerships with the Great Plains Transportation Museum and Intrust Bank Arena as well as events celebrating the organization’s 50th anniversary. The campaign will include messaging on a large digital sign in the arena, new paint and signage on museum railcars, a press conference and ribbon cutting event for the museum display with a free concert and free admission.
Louisiana will launch statewide radio ads targeting sugar cane-producing and forestry areas, digital ads in an online agricultural newsletter, audio ads on a twice-weekly sports podcast for Louisiana State University fans and social media ads during “See Tracks? Think Train” week as well. Additionally, the grants will help fund in-person rail safety education presentations in high traffic areas across the state.
Maryland will conduct in-person activities, social media outreach and advertising at targeted commuter rail stations in the state to raise awareness about rail safety education. The campaign includes signage, audio messaging, social media ads, station pop-up events, posters, banners, safety brochures with mailed tickets, public safety announcements in English and Spanish, FM radio PSAs, wrapped ticket vending machines and event giveaways.
Mississippi will highlight rail safety education as Amtrak passenger train service plans to return to the Gulf Coast later this year after a hiatus of nearly two decades. The campaign, which will feature community events, encompasses audio ads, local display ads with geofencing, website retargeting, social media ads, and streaming service ads running in September 2024.
Nebraska will conduct outreach to 100 public libraries in rural areas with rail safety education materials, events and presentations, encourage law enforcement participation for Operation Clear Track, held during “See Tracks? Think Train” week as well as launch a billboard and radio ad campaign in targeted communities.
New Jersey will include awareness events, along with streaming video PSA advertising in the high-incident areas of Bergen and Middlesex counties, with large “See Tracks? Think Train!” magnetic decals be displayed on local short line railroad equipment in Raritan and Middlesex counties.
North Carolina will partner with the N.C. High School Athletic Association and the N.C. Independent School Athletic Association to provide rail safety messaging reaching 536 schools across the state starting in September. The campaign includes video ads played during streamed athletic events, social media messaging, newsletter mentions, website recognition, event sponsorships, in-person exhibits and speaking opportunities as well as other branding efforts.
North Dakota will leverage partnerships and conduct a digital marketing campaign targeting new drivers, pedestrians, bus drivers and farm equipment operators for rail safety education presentations, along with outreach to unhoused populations to distribute safety information and clothing items with safety messaging. Law enforcement partners will participate in positive enforcement events during “See Tracks? Think Train” week. That marketing campaign includes social media, geofencing, print and radio ads and digital billboards.
Oregon will conduct in-person rail safety education outreach and run a targeted digital display ad and geofencing campaign to reach drivers and commuters in the Portland area during September.
South Dakota will focus on partnerships and launch a digital marketing campaign targeting new drivers, pedestrians, farm equipment operators, and bus drivers in major cities in the Black Hills area and the eastern half of the state. Law enforcement partners will participate in positive enforcement events during “See Tracks? Think Train” week with a related marketing campaign including social media, geofencing, print and radio ads and digital billboards.

The American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials will hold its 2024 Council on Public Transportation Annual Meeting October 8-9 in Salt Lake City right after “See Tracks? Think Train” week. To register for this meeting, click here.

The Council provides expertise and leadership from a state perspective for advancing public transportation as a part of an intermodal transportation system. It develops legislative, policy, and program recommendations related to all forms of passenger public transportation services including rural, urban, regional and intercity bus, travel demand management and commuter rail.

The Council and AASHTO Transit Management are jointly sponsoring this annual meeting to bring together state departments of transportation, Federal Transit Administration officials, and industry partners for a series of panel sessions and open discussions on state public transit programs and national transit policy developments.

The Council said this year’s gathering will feature speakers from the Utah Department of Transportation – the host state for the 2024 Annual Meeting – as well as from the Utah Transit Authority (UTA) and the Federal Transit Administration’s Region 8 Office. As part of this year’s meeting, the UTA will offer a technical tour of Salt Lake City’s transit system.

This will also be the second year in a row that the Council’s Annual Meeting will feature a National Transit Institute-sponsored technical workshop for state DOTs. For 2024, this technical workshop is on State Management Reviews, with a special focus on Disadvantaged Business Enterprise reporting.