GWI Safety

2010 Grade Crossings and Derailments

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 surpasses the Class I railroads.

For 2010, 53 of GWI's 62 railroads were injury free, and GWI achieved an overall injury frequency rate of 0.51 per 200,000 man hours. This is nearly eight times better than the short line peer group average, better than any Class I railroad and nearly three times better than the Class I railroad average.

The American Short Line and Regional Railroad Association (ASLRRA) recognized 42 GWI railroads with the Jake Award With Distinction for 2010, which is presented to member railroads who complete the year with perfect safety records. Click here to see the winners. Among them, GWI's Buffalo & Pittsburgh Railroad received three ASLRRA President's Awards, for most hours of injury-free operation, best safety rate in the 250,000+ man-hours category and most improved safety performance -- the latter in recognition its 200 employees working injury-free for all of 2008, 2009 and 2010 after sustaining six reportable injuries in 2007. GWI's Bay Line Railroad also won the President's Award for best safety rate in the 50,000-150,000 man-hours category.

The Buffalo & Pittsburgh Railroad also received its second-consecutive E.H. Harriman Gold Award for the best employee safety record among railroads working less than four million employee-hours in 2010.

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.


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 the last two years, our employees made 745 Operation Lifesaver presentations to more than 38,000 schoolchildren, school bus drivers and other individuals to discuss the importance of rail-crossing safety.
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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.