Texas' worst track records

RANCHO VIEJO - Near some railroad tracks at the corner of Roberta Road and the southbound frontage road sits a lone baby blue memorial wreath attached to a small wooden cross.

Although not marked with a photo or name, the wreath is located in an area where more than two years ago a Brownsville man died after trying to outrun a train.

Several years earlier, a San Benito woman was also killed nearby in an accident involving a vehicle and train. Her husband was crossing the tracks and attempted to back up before the train collided with his truck.

Cameron County recently made the list of the 12 most dangerous counties for railway accidents, according to a report compiled by theTexas Rail Relocation and Improvement Association, which tracked freight and passenger rail accidents and incidents reported from 1998 to 2007. Cameron County is ranked eighth on the list.

The association's goal is to get railroads moved from congested areas to less populated regions to help reduce the number of train-related accidents and fatalities.

"We believe that rerouting that (train traffic) through less heavily populated areas is going to minimize the risk," said John Egan, spokesman for the Texas Rail Relocation and Improvement Association. "And hopefully new tracks will have state-of- the-art equipment and technology that can keep people safe."

Egan added that educating the public could also help reduce accidents. The association is also advocating putting bridge crossings over areas that are at more risk.

There were 12,271 rail accidents and incidents in Texas from 1998 to 2007, the association reported, which included 853 deaths and 7,203 injuries.

The association plans to approach the Texas Legislature when it convenes next week to push for rail relocation funding. As of now, because the association is a private organization, its bank account is empty, Egan said.

It was in July 2005 that state troopers believe Juan Medrano Collazo, 74, of Brownsville, was trying to beat a train at Roberta Road, then called Barrera Road and the frontage road. The train struck and dragged Collazo's van more than 1,500 feet.

Collazo died from injuries he received in the collision.

Today, the railroad crossing at Roberta Road does not have automated crossing arms to block traffic as trains approach.

Cameron County Judge Carlos H. Cascos said he's not surprised that the county made the list, considering the county has a lot of rural crossings, especially in the Olmito area.

There is a railroad crossing at nearly every Old Highway 77 intersection leading to Olmito.

Many of the rural crossings do not have barriers, lights or bells to alert motorists or pedestrians of approaching trains. Cascos estimates that to improve each crossing will cost the state about $50,000. "It's a money issue," he said.

The county is pushing through the West Rail Relocation Plan to remove train tracks from the heavily populated, congested parts of the county.

"Whatever crossings we do have, you have to have the proper lighting, the proper barriers," Cascos said. "If you have the proper infrastructure in place it's going to reduce the number of accidents."

However, the county judge added, "Even with that (crossing guards) you have people who want to beat the train."

More barriers are located in areas of the county with larger populations, such as nearby Rancho Viejo, which has barriers at all entrances leading to the town from the frontage road.

Raquel Espinoza, spokeswoman for Union Pacific Railroad, said the association's report is misleading because it fails to mention the main causes of the accidents and fatalities - such as driver inattentiveness and dangerous rail crossings.

"They are misinterpreting the data," Espinoza said. "To relocate the railroad tracks you are just moving the problem to somewhere else." She said the association doesn't "have any money and so this (report) is a scare tactic they are trying to use."

Motorists who are trying to outrun trains or drive around the barriers cause many of the accidents.

"That is completely preventable," Espinoza said. "We've really tried to educate the community about that. It's not worth an extra 45 seconds to try and beat the train."

To alert the public to the danger of trying to outrun a train, Union Pacific initiated CARE or Crossing Accident Reduction Enforcement. The program educates drivers about the consequences of rushing past warning devices at railroad crossings.

The railroad company has provided local officials with the chance to participate in the program to see how dangerous some crossings can be for motorists, who fail to yield to oncoming train traffic.

"Collisions and fatalities have been reduced significantly by safety efforts that involved railroad companies in the community at large," Espinoza said.