93RD GENERAL ASSEMBLY
State of Illinois
2003 and 2004
HB6227

 

Introduced 02/06/04, by Tom Cross

 

SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:
 
625 ILCS 5/18c-7402   from Ch. 95 1/2, par. 18c-7402

    Amends the Illinois Vehicle Code. Makes a technical change in a Section concerning railroad safety.


LRB093 15468 DRH 41071 b

 

 

A BILL FOR

 

HB6227 LRB093 15468 DRH 41071 b

1     AN ACT in regard to vehicles.
 
2     Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
3 represented in the General Assembly:
 
4     Section 5. The Illinois Vehicle Code is amended by changing
5 Section 18c-7402 as follows:
 
6     (625 ILCS 5/18c-7402)  (from Ch. 95 1/2, par. 18c-7402)
7     Sec. 18c-7402. Safety Requirements for Railroad
8 Operations.
9     (1) Obstruction of Crossings.
10         (a) Obstruction of Emergency Vehicles. Every railroad
11     shall be operated in such a manner as to minimize
12     obstruction of emergency vehicles at crossings. Where the
13     such obstruction occurs and the train crew is aware of the
14     obstruction, the train crew shall immediately take any
15     action, consistent with safe operating procedure,
16     necessary to remove the obstruction. In the Chicago and St.
17     Louis switching districts, every railroad dispatcher or
18     other person responsible for the movement of railroad
19     equipment in a specific area who receives notification that
20     railroad equipment is obstructing the movement of an
21     emergency vehicle at any crossing within such area shall
22     immediately notify the train crew through use of existing
23     communication facilities. Upon notification, the train
24     crew shall take immediate action in accordance with this
25     paragraph.
26         (b) Obstruction of Highway at Grade Crossing
27     Prohibited. It is unlawful for a rail carrier to permit any
28     train, railroad car or engine to obstruct public travel at
29     a railroad-highway grade crossing for a period in excess of
30     10 minutes, except where such train or railroad car is
31     continuously moving or cannot be moved by reason of
32     circumstances over which the rail carrier has no reasonable

 

 

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1     control.
2     In a county with a population of greater than 1,000,000, as
3 determined by the most recent federal census, during the hours
4 of 7:00 a.m. through 9:00 a.m. and 4:00 p.m. through 6:00 p.m.
5 it is unlawful for a rail carrier to permit any single train or
6 railroad car to obstruct public travel at a railroad-highway
7 grade crossing in excess of a total of 10 minutes during a 30
8 minute period, except where the train or railroad car cannot be
9 moved by reason or circumstances over which the rail carrier
10 has no reasonable control. Under no circumstances will a moving
11 train be stopped for the purposes of issuing a citation related
12 to this Section.
13     However, no employee acting under the rules or orders of
14 the rail carrier or its supervisory personnel may be prosecuted
15 for a violation of this subsection (b).
16         (c) Punishment for Obstruction of Grade Crossing. Any
17     rail carrier violating paragraph (b) of this subsection
18     shall be guilty of a petty offense and fined not less than
19     $200 nor more than $500 if the duration of the obstruction
20     is in excess of 10 minutes but no longer than 15 minutes.
21     If the duration of the obstruction exceeds 15 minutes the
22     violation shall be a business offense and the following
23     fines shall be imposed: if the duration of the obstruction
24     is in excess of 15 minutes but no longer than 20 minutes,
25     the fine shall be $500; if the duration of the obstruction
26     is in excess of 20 minutes but no longer than 25 minutes,
27     the fine shall be $700; if the duration of the obstruction
28     is in excess of 25 minutes, but no longer than 30 minutes,
29     the fine shall be $900; if the duration of the obstruction
30     is in excess of 30 minutes but no longer than 35 minutes,
31     the fine shall be $1,000; if the duration of the
32     obstruction is in excess of 35 minutes, the fine shall be
33     $1,000 plus an additional $500 for each 5 minutes of
34     obstruction in excess of 25 minutes of obstruction.
35     (2) Other Operational Requirements.
36         (a) Bell and Whistle-Crossings. Every rail carrier

 

 

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1     shall cause a bell, and a whistle or horn to be placed and
2     kept on each locomotive, and shall cause the same to be
3     rung or sounded by the engineer or fireman, at the distance
4     of a least 1,320 feet, from the place where the railroad
5     crosses or intersects any public highway, and shall be kept
6     ringing or sounding until the highway is reached; provided
7     that at crossings where the Commission shall by order
8     direct, only after a hearing has been held to determine the
9     public is reasonably and sufficiently protected, the rail
10     carrier may be excused from giving warning provided by this
11     paragraph.
12         (a-5) The requirements of paragraph (a) of this
13     subsection (2) regarding ringing a bell and sounding a
14     whistle or horn do not apply at a railroad crossing that
15     has a permanently installed automated audible warning
16     device authorized by the Commission under Section
17     18c-7402.1 that sounds automatically when an approaching
18     train is at least 1,320 feet from the crossing and that
19     keeps sounding until the lead locomotive has crossed the
20     highway. The engineer or fireman may ring the bell or sound
21     the whistle or horn at a railroad crossing that has a
22     permanently installed audible warning device.
23         (b) Speed Limits. Each rail carrier shall operate its
24     trains in compliance with speed limits set by the
25     Commission. The Commission may set train speed limits only
26     where such limits are necessitated by extraordinary
27     circumstances effecting the public safety, and shall
28     maintain such train speed limits in effect only for such
29     time as the extraordinary circumstances prevail.
30         The Commission and the Department of Transportation
31     shall conduct a study of the relation between train speeds
32     and railroad-highway grade crossing safety. The Commission
33     shall report the findings of the study to the General
34     Assembly no later than January 5, 1997.
35         (c) Special Speed Limit; Pilot Project. The Commission
36     and the Board of the Commuter Rail Division of the Regional

 

 

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1     Transportation Authority shall conduct a pilot project in
2     the Village of Fox River Grove, the site of the fatal
3     school bus accident at a railroad crossing on October 25,
4     1995, in order to improve railroad crossing safety. For
5     this project, the Commission is directed to set the maximum
6     train speed limit for Regional Transportation Authority
7     trains at 50 miles per hour at intersections on that
8     portion of the intrastate rail line located in the Village
9     of Fox River Grove. If the Regional Transportation
10     Authority deliberately fails to comply with this maximum
11     speed limit, then any entity, governmental or otherwise,
12     that provides capital or operational funds to the Regional
13     Transportation Authority shall appropriately reduce or
14     eliminate that funding. The Commission shall report to the
15     Governor and the General Assembly on the results of this
16     pilot project in January 1999, January 2000, and January
17     2001. The Commission shall also submit a final report on
18     the pilot project to the Governor and the General Assembly
19     in January 2001. The provisions of this subsection (c),
20     other than this sentence, are inoperative after February 1,
21     2001.
22     (3) Report and Investigation of Rail Accidents.
23         (a) Reports. Every rail carrier shall report to the
24     Commission, by the speediest means possible, whether
25     telephone, telegraph, or otherwise, every accident
26     involving its equipment, track, or other property which
27     resulted in loss of life to any person. In addition, such
28     carriers shall file a written report with the Commission.
29     Reports submitted under this paragraph shall be strictly
30     confidential, shall be specifically prohibited from
31     disclosure, and shall not be admissible in any
32     administrative or judicial proceeding relating to the
33     accidents reported.
34         (b) Investigations. The Commission may investigate all
35     railroad accidents reported to it or of which it acquires
36     knowledge independent of reports made by rail carriers, and

 

 

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1     shall have the power, consistent with standards and
2     procedures established under the Federal Railroad Safety
3     Act, as amended, to enter such temporary orders as will
4     minimize the risk of future accidents pending notice,
5     hearing, and final action by the Commission.
6 (Source: P.A. 91-675, eff. 6-1-00; 92-284, eff. 8-9-01.)