Highway-Rail Intersection Crash Taxonomy for Connected Vehicle Safety Research

This report characterizes the frequency, severity, and costs of highway-rail intersection (HRI) collisions, and the estimated potential reductions in these metrics resulting from the implementation of Connected Vehicle HRI safety applications. Multiple data sources were accessed with a focus on United States Department of Transportation (US DOT) online databases, which included the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) Office of Safety Analysis, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) National Automotive Sampling System (NASS) and the Federal Transit Administration (FTA) National Transit Database (NTD). FRA data from the 2008-2012 study period showed that annual combined rail infrastructure and equipment costs due to HRI accidents were between $20 million and $35 million. An alternative method developed by the US DOT National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHSTA) provides for the economic losses associated with medical and legal costs, lost productivity, and travel delay. Using this alternative method, the annual costs to society were estimated at $650 million.