Safety is our number-one priority at GWI
every day.
Since our crews are on and off equipment much more frequently in
short line railroading and industrial switching, we're proud that
our safety record rivals the Class I railroads.
Last year, the American Short Line and Regional Railroad
Association (ASLRRA) recognized 26 GWI railroads (or about 70% of
our U.S. railroads) with the
Jake Award With
Distinction, which is presented to member railroads who
complete the year with perfect safety records -- zero personal
injuries and zero train accidents.
Click here to see the winners. GWI's Willamette & Pacific
Railroad also won two ASLRRA President's Awards for having the best
safety rate in the 250,000+ man-hours category, as well as for
having the most man hours of injury-free operation.
For 2008, the Willamette & Pacific was also recognized with the
E.H. Harriman Gold Award, which is presented for
the best safety performance of any U.S. railroad working between
250,000 and 4 million man hours.
Safety is never "fixed," and we are committed to continuous
improvement. Our goal is for every one of our operating regions to
be injury-free, every day. In 2008, four of GWI's nine operating
regions achieved this goal.
Public
Education
To educate the public about grade-crossing safety, GWI has
dramatically expanded its participation in
Operation Lifesaver, a national,
nonprofit education and awareness program dedicated to ending
tragic collisions, fatalities and injuries at highway-rail grade
crossings and on railroad rights of way.
In 2009, GWI
employees made 285 Operation Lifesaver presentations to more than
15,500 schoolchildren, school bus drivers and other individuals to
discuss the importance of rail-crossing safety.
Here's what you can do
to stay safe around trains...Never tresspass on any railroad property or right of
way!
Doing so is illegal and risks serious injury or
death.
Cross only at designated pedestrian or roadway crossings!
Look for a train moving from either direction -- and then
look for a
second train from either
direction.
Always expect a train!
Trains do not have set schedules and can approach from
either direction at any time of day or night.
Trains do not take holidays.
Don't stand next to tracks!
Trains can overhang the tracks by three feet on either
side, and straps and tiedowns can extend even
further.
Never try to beat a train!
Because of their size, you cannot judge a train's speed
or distance. Trains cannot make sudden stops. Remember that a
locomotive weighs 200 tons. An automobile being hit by a train is
equivalent to a soda can being hit by an automobile.