Reducing Boarding and Alighting Accident Rates on Mixed High and Low Platform Railroad Lines through Car and Station Design
Publication: Journal of Transportation Engineering
Volume 131, Issue 5
Abstract
Analysis of actual accident experience in the United States from 1995 to 2000 has revealed that railroad commuter services using a combination of high and low level platforms exhibit a higher injury rate in boarding and alighting accidents than systems with either all high or all low platforms. This paper examines the safety features of these different types of station platforms and the corresponding railroad car entranceways used on these systems. New designs that would incorporate features of the lower accident rate high level only or low level only systems are identified and examined. Estimates of the reduction in the number of injuries that would result from use of these designs are made. The connection to other important performance features impacted by the designs are briefly considered, including cost, speed, meeting Americans with Disabilities Act requirements, and compatibility with freight service. Conclusions regarding the incorporation of boarding and alighting accident considerations in the evaluation of the various car and platform design options as rail passenger lines are upgraded or new services introduced are presented.
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Acknowledgments
Interest in the problem of car and station design issues arose from research on rail and intermodal freight service sponsored by Conrail, USDOT, NSF, UPS, and other major rail shippers. Input from John Sammon, formerly Senior Vice President of Conrail (later CSX), Rick Crawford and Bill Schafer of Norfolk Southern, and Michael Burshtin and David Casper of Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority, is gratefully appreciated, but does not imply endorsement of this work. Partial support for the injury analysis presented here came from the USDOT, through the Mid-Atlantic Universities Transportation Center, and the UPS Foundation Professorship in Transportation at the University of Pennsylvania. The assistance of Lee Lai, an undergraduate engineering major, in gathering the accident data is gratefully acknowledged.
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Information & Authors
Information
Published In
Journal of Transportation Engineering
Volume 131 • Issue 5 • May 2005
Pages: 382 - 391
Copyright
© 2005 ASCE.
History
Received: Dec 8, 2004
Accepted: Dec 28, 2004
Published online: May 1, 2005
Published in print: May 2005
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