CSX Corp. (NASDAQ: CSX) will join Operation Lifesaver, Inc. (OLI), to conduct the sixth annual Rail Safety Week campaign to educate and empower the public to make safe decisions around trains and railroad tracks.

We will be partnering with the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA), other Class 1 railroads, Amtrak, commuter rail-service providers and law enforcement agencies to improve safety awareness around tracks and trains. Through public events, digital billboards and social media messages during the week of September 19-25, CSX will work to reduce the number of grade crossing and trespass incidents in communities across its 26-state network.

“Every collision at a grade crossing and on the railroad tracks is preventable,” said Sean Douris, chief of police, public safety and infrastructure protection. “At CSX, our goal is zero incidents. Rail Safety Week offers the opportunity for us to encourage motorists and pedestrians in communities along our network to remain alert around tracks and to take the necessary precautions to stay safe.”

According to national statistics, each year approximately 2,100 North Americans are killed or seriously injured when engaging in unsafe behavior around tracks and trains. In the U.S. alone, a person or vehicle is hit by a train every 3 hours.

Each day of this week-long collaborative effort will focus on a different safety theme, such as crossing safety and trespass prevention. CSX police will engage in education and enforcement activities in several states where crossing collisions ranked highest in 2021.

To further increase awareness of this vital public safety initiative, this year CSX unveiled a new OLI rail safety commemorative locomotive, painted at the railroads locomotive shop in Huntington, West Virginia. The CSXT 4568 engine will travel the company’s rail network as a visual reminder for the public to be safe at highway-rail grade crossings and near railroad tracks.