07-12-2009, 05:16 PM
Whether it is a kid or an adult, I see or hear of people running around crossing gates all the time because they don't want to wait for a slow freight. It never occurs to them that the train coming might not be slow or might be just out of sight at the crossing. I used to cringe when watching the U.P. working a siding near the shop I used to work at. They would often stop and start the trains and reverse moves to switch out industries near a grade crossing on a side street well away from the main road. Kids would ride up on bicycles and if the train wasn't moving they would throw their bike on top of a flat car or lift it between cars and then climb over the couplers. Often the train would move just after they cleared it. Thankfully, I never saw anyone killed while I waited for them to move the train to clear the intersection; but it wasn't because of any evidence of common sense on the part of the pedestrians and bicycle riders climbing through the stopped train!