Teens Put Their Lives on the Line

A poll of Canadian teens shows that a majority put themselves at risk by walking on railway tracks, even though they know the danger posed by moving trains.

First, the good news. Most of the youths (94 per cent) know it's dangerous to walk or play on railway tracks.

The bad news is that despite this, half admit to doing just that, and one in five say it's okay to do as long as no train is coming. One-quarter of those who have engaged in risky behaviour do so for the "danger and excitement"; and 72 per cent would take a shortcut across railway tracks if it meant saving 20 minutes.

Many young people underestimate the speed of a train when they see it. One in five think they will be able to hear a train coming for at least five minutes before it passes, and a third believe that if a train is nearby, they will hear the whistle.

The findings are disturbing, because almost 60 per cent of Canadian children live or go to school within a 20-minute walk of railway tracks. Earlier this year, for example, the small community of Casselman, near Ottawa, was alarmed by a rash of incidents. Young people were "playing chicken" with trains and taking shortcuts through railway property and equipment. Police and community officials put on a safety blitz, with support from Operation Lifesaver staff, the railways and the Canada Safety Council.

The Canada Safety Council is a partner in Operation Lifesaver, a government-industry-community public education and safety program. Every year almost half a million elementary school children learn about railway safety through OL, which is co-sponsored by the Railway Association of Canada and Transport Canada. One of the children's resources is CSC's activity booklet Tracks are for Trains, which features Elmer the Safety Elephant.

OL has successfully helped reduce highway-railway crossing collisions and trespasser incidents by 60 per cent over the past two decades. Direction 2006 is a special initiative to achieve a further 50 per cent reduction by the end of the year 2006.

This year, Direction 2006 produced the "kids on a trestle" television public service announcement. The survey used streaming video to obtain reactions. When shown the PSA, 84 per cent said it was effective in discouraging people from walking on railway tracks.

The Ipsos-Reid poll, commissioned by the Railway Association of Canada, was conducted March 8 to 26 among 1,043 Canadians aged 12 to18 who are Internet-enabled.

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