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REDFLEXrail® results

Grand Prairie, Texas installed the first automated rail grade crossing enforcement cameras in 2007, citing hundreds of annual accidents or incidents in which drivers disobeyed active warning systems.

Common types of accidents include drivers racing a closing gate, a vehicle that gets stuck on tracks, and drivers who race the rising upswing of a gate. The photos at right show a truck dashing through a closing gate. One of the crossbars was damaged by the violator shortly before a freight train passed through as a photo enforcement camera recorded the incident and the vehicle's license plate number.

Five people died at Grand Prairie's 11 railroad crossings since 2003. A 10-month-old child was critically injured in one accident in 2005. Scores of other accidents create unnecessary demands on Grand Prairie police and countless dollars in damages.

The Grand Prairie cameras, installed and operated through a contract with Redflex Traffic Systems, are credited with reducing railroad crossing violations by as much as 48 percent, according to an early review by city officials.

Grand Prairie's cameras were introduced through a partnership with Union Pacific Railroad, where officials voiced strong support for automated enforcement technology.

The fine for running a Grand Prairie railroad crossing gate is $75. The cameras, which operate similar to red light cameras, record digital photos and video of violations. The cameras monitor up to six lanes of traffic, capturing high-resolution images of license plates of violating vehicles.