| Title | Freight car reflectorization |
|---|---|
| Record ID | 15593 |
| Personal Name Creator |
Carroll, A. A.; Multer, J.; Williams, D.; Yaffee, M. A. |
| Source | Safety of Highway-Railroad Grade Crossings; 192p. in various pagings |
| Corporate Creator | John A. Volpe National Transportation Systems Center (U.S.) |
| Publisher | United States. Federal Railroad Administration. Office of Research and Development |
| Publication Date | 19990100 |
| Language | English |
| Abstract | Collisions at highway-railroad grade crossings have posed a significant safety problem. To reduce the number of these collisions at highway-railroad grade crossings where train visibility is a contributing factor, the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) is investigating measures to enhance the visibility of trains with the use of retroreflectors on freight cars. A four-phase research program was conducted to determine the feasibility of reflectorization as a train conspicuity device. A literature review provided past and current transportation experiences on the use of retroreflectors. A demonstration test was conducted to establish the durability of a newly developed (microprismatic) material, and to create a retroreflective pattern to test for the next phase of research. A nationwide in-service test was conducted to measure the microprismatic retroreflectors' performance, accident reduction potential, and costs. A human factors test was conducted to evaluate the detectability and recognition of several retroreflective designs. Results from this research indicate that a uniform, recognizable pattern of reflectorized material can facilitate recognition of a freight car. The durability of the microprismatic material tested indicates that adequate intensity levels can be sustained up to 10 years with maintenance. |
| Rosap ID | dot:8457 |
| Rosap URL | https://rosap.ntl.bts.gov/view/dot/8457 |
| TRT Terms | Railroad grade crossings |
| General Subjects | Accident reduction; Brightness; Costs; Durabilty; Freight cars; Highway safety; Performance evaluation; Railroad grade crossing accidents; Reflectorization; Reflectors; Research programs; Retroreflection; Retroreflectors; Safety research; Vehi; Visibility |
| Classification | NTL - FREIGHT - FREIGHT; NTL - RAIL TRANSPORTATION - RAIL TRANSPORTATION; NTL - RAIL TRANSPORTATION - Rail Safety; NTL - RAIL TRANSPORTATION - Railroad Highway Grade Crossings |
| Geographical Coverage |
United States |
| OCLC | 10165573 |
| TRIS Online Accession No |
765984 |
| Contract Number | R9026/RR997; R9068/RR997; R9007/RR997 |
| Report Number | DOT-VNTSC-FRA-97-2; DOT/FRA/ORD-98/11 |
| Availability | Volpe National Transportation Systems Center, Technical Reference Center |
| Resource type | Tech Report |
| URL | https://ntlrepository.blob.core.windows.net/lib/15000/15500/15593/PB2000100106.pdf |
| Format | |
| Database | NTL Digital Repository |