Passenger Trains > NY: Ignore rail gate signals, pay $750

NY has implemented new rules which apply a $750 fine for a second offense of ignoring rail crossing signals. A thousand bucks for a third offense within 30 months.  The state will also check traffic signal coordination at least once yearly. NY Daily News:
The new penalties for drivers who do not stop and wait for gates at Long Island Rail Road and Metro-North crossings will be $750 for the second offense and $1,000 for the third offense taking place over a two-and-a-half-year period.Meanwhile, drivers caught repeatedly ignoring traffic signals could get slapped with a $750 penalty.
 The deal is part of a rail safety package that expands grade crossing inspections on highways to once every two years. The state Department of Transportation will also launch a program coordinating inspections of traffic-control signals at rail crossings on highways.


Do you feel lucky, sucker?
 

The Grim Reaper often imposes a much higher penality on the first offense!

barrydraper Wrote:
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> The Grim Reaper often imposes a much higher
> penality on the first offense!

Amen to that.

I suspect the fines are also an incentive to get the local constables to write the tickets.  Here in NJ, there are penty of charges that the officers won't write. It's not profitable to the town to pay an officer time and a half for four hours to testify on a $25 ticket.  For a big piece of $750, that's another story.

Traffic citations here in Calif. can run up to a grand or more with all the add-ons...

Bill Deaver
Tehachapi, CA

Any increased penalties for railroads blocking crossings or having gates "stuck down"?

This is not particularly meaningful or helpful.

People frequently discount the possibility of severe injury or death when contemplating a railroad crossing violation.  It's unlikely they would be deterred by a mere fine, most likely a fine that they are unaware of.

In addition, unless there is added enforcement, these higher fines are purely theortical.  And many violators are unable to pay if the fines are too high, so the result is that they don't pay.  Perhaps some lose their driving privilege, but that's not terribly critical either:  the most important factor necessary to drive a car is having a car, rather than having a driver's license.

Police face many laws that they are called upon to enforce.  With railroads, public officials may find them to be a curiosity, outside of their main thought framework.  They may consider railroad police to be better suited to enforcement of these matters.

reindeerflame Wrote:
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> This is not particularly meaningful or helpful.
>
> People frequently discount the possibility of
> severe injury or death when contemplating a
> railroad crossing violation.  It's unlikely they
> would be deterred by a mere fine, most likely a
> fine that they are unaware of.
>
> In addition, unless there is added enforcement,
> these higher fines are purely theortical.  And
> many violators are unable to pay if the fines are
> too high, so the result is that they don't pay. 
> Perhaps some lose their driving privilege, but
> that's not terribly critical either:  the most
> important factor necessary to drive a car is
> having a car, rather than having a driver's
> license.
>
> Police face many laws that they are called upon to
> enforce.  With railroads, public officials may
> find them to be a curiosity, outside of their main
> thought framework.  They may consider railroad
> police to be better suited to enforcement of
> these matters.

That's true in many places, and the low fines don't encourage police to stake out crossings.  But, a big piece of $750 in fines is a powerful incentive. The police respond to financial incentives, just like everyone else.

Well, it's true that if people are unaware of fines starting at an unheard-of three quarters of a grand, they won't be deterred. But such news would travel fast by word of mouth, quite possibly being embellished in the retelling, once only a few people are stung.

Of course, if the fines succeed in accomplishing their purpose, they will cease being a revenue center, if and when violations of law (and of common sense) will presumably dwindle to next to nothing.

badgerexpat Wrote:
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> Well, it's true that if people are unaware of
> fines starting at an unheard-of three quarters of
> a grand, they won't be deterred. But such news
> would travel fast by word of mouth, quite possibly
> being embellished in the retelling, once only a
> few people are stung.
>
> Of course, if the fines succeed in accomplishing
> their purpose, they will cease being a revenue
> center, if and when violations of law (and of
> common sense) will presumably dwindle to next to
> nothing.

Virtually any moving violation in California comes with a penalty of $400 and up, so $750 would hardly be outlandish.  Even carpool lane violations come with hefty penalties, but they see frequent use by single drivers.  Citations of these matters are relatively infrequent.

badgerexpat Wrote:
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> Well, it's true that if people are unaware of
> fines starting at an unheard-of three quarters of
> a grand, they won't be deterred. But such news
> would travel fast by word of mouth, quite possibly
> being embellished in the retelling, once only a
> few people are stung.
>
> Of course, if the fines succeed in accomplishing
> their purpose, they will cease being a revenue
> center, if and when violations of law (and of
> common sense) will presumably dwindle to next to
> nothing.

In some NJ traffic stops, TIME is at least as valuable as money.  On I-280, the trooper will occasionally set up at the end of the highway shoulder people use as a cut-through.

First car gets motioned up to the bumper of the trooper car. Trooper grabs license, registration and insurance card. Trooper walks back and stops the next car at the first car's bumper. Repeats until he has 8-10 packets of info.

Then he returns to his own car while he radios in the info, checks paperwork, writes up the summons, etc. I could see this circus from my old office window, it could take a half hour.  Then he pulls up, allowing the cars to merge into traffic with his help.  The $200 won't matter to most people, but a half hour of steaming and stewing probably will....

Not as big a problem as people who go around them and get hit, except for those who must always find them. In almost sixty years of driving have only seen two but the results will vary by the time one gets done telling the story about there wait at ones stuck down.
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> Any increased penalties for railroads blocking
> crossings or having gates "stuck down"?