Firetruck drove around rail crossing arms after waiting for earlier train to pass, according to person briefed on details

Summary

A Brightline high-speed train collided with a firetruck in downtown Delray Beach, Florida, injuring 15 people, including three firefighters.

The firetruck reportedly drove around lowered crossing arms after waiting for a freight train to pass.

The crash, which severely damaged both the train and firetruck, is under investigation by the Federal Railroad Administration.

Brightline trains, known for having the nation’s highest death rate since launching in 2017, have faced scrutiny over safety.

The incident adds to growing concerns about railroad safety following other recent accidents nationwide.

  • @[email protected]English
    3•5 days ago

    I would be very interested to know which countries have 100% grade-separated crossings, especially if they’re mostly flat, so they can’t take advantage of terrain (and also aren’t micronations).

    • @[email protected]
      6•5 days ago

      For high speed rail, most countries with any real HSR infrastructure will have grade separation unless absolutely impossible for some reason. France, Japan, Spain.

      • @AA5B
        1•1 day ago

        Note also the new California High Speed Rail is being built with grade separations.

        I don’t believe Acela is, but probably faster sections are. That’s not high speed rail though

      • @[email protected]English
        3•5 days ago

        Ah, that’s why. It’s because Brightline service isn’t really high speed rail, and in countries where they do have real high speed rail, the infrastructure is built out to actually support it.

        I was looking around at French rail service, and the true high speed rail is grade-separated, but the regional rail service still has grade crossings.

        • @[email protected]
          2•4 days ago

          That makes sense. If you’re actually running high speed rail that’s actually high speed, grade separation is not really optional. A few wood barriers (that cars can drive around if the drivers are dumb enough) don’t cut it when a train is going 350-400km/h.