Kansas Failing to Reduce Train-Related Deaths

The number of people killed in train-related accidents in Kansas has remained steady in the past 20 years although there has been a dramatic decrease in such fatalities nationwide, according to federal statistics. About 16 people were killed by trains in Kansas every year from 1992 to 2011 — 19 in the first 11 months of 2010 — but nationally train-related fatalities dropped from 1,170 to 644 in the same period, the Federal Railroad Administration said. Kansas’ poor performance comes despite efforts to educate the public through safety seminars and the addition of more gates and lights at intersections.