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92_HB1507
LRB9202104DHpc
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
5 changing 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
11 railroad shall be operated in such a manner as to
12 minimize obstruction of emergency vehicles at crossings.
13 Where such obstruction occurs and the train crew is aware
14 of the obstruction, the train crew shall immediately take
15 any action, consistent with safe operating procedure,
16 necessary to remove the obstruction. In the Chicago and
17 St. Louis switching districts, every railroad dispatcher
18 or other person responsible for the movement of railroad
19 equipment in a specific area who receives notification
20 that 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
28 any train, railroad car or engine to obstruct public
29 travel at a railroad-highway grade crossing for a period
30 in excess of 10 minutes, except where such train or
31 railroad car is continuously moving or cannot be moved by
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1 reason of circumstances over which the rail carrier has
2 no reasonable control.
3 In a county with a population of greater than 1,000,000,
4 as determined by the most recent federal census, during the
5 hours of 7:00 a.m. through 9:00 a.m. and 4:00 p.m. through
6 6:00 p.m. it is unlawful for a rail carrier to permit any
7 single train or railroad car to obstruct public travel at a
8 railroad-highway grade crossing in excess of a total of 10
9 minutes during a 30 minute period, except where the train or
10 railroad car cannot be moved by reason or circumstances over
11 which the rail carrier has no reasonable control. Under no
12 circumstances will a moving train be stopped for the purposes
13 of issuing a citation related to this Section.
14 However, no employee acting under the rules or orders of
15 the rail carrier or its supervisory personnel may be
16 prosecuted for a violation of this subsection (b).
17 (c) Punishment for Obstruction of Grade Crossing.
18 Any rail carrier violating paragraph (b) of this
19 subsection shall be guilty of a petty offense and fined
20 not less than $200 nor more than $500 if the duration of
21 the obstruction is in excess of 10 minutes but no longer
22 than 15 minutes. If the duration of the obstruction
23 exceeds 15 minutes the violation shall be a business
24 offense and the following fines shall be imposed: if the
25 duration of the obstruction is in excess of 15 minutes
26 but no longer than 20 minutes, the fine shall be $500; if
27 the duration of the obstruction is in excess of 20
28 minutes but no longer than 25 minutes, the fine shall be
29 $700; if the duration of the obstruction is in excess of
30 25 minutes, but no longer than 30 minutes, the fine shall
31 be $900; if the duration of the obstruction is in excess
32 of 30 minutes but no longer than 35 minutes, the fine
33 shall be $1,000; if the duration of the obstruction is in
34 excess of 35 minutes, the fine shall be $1,000 plus an
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1 additional $500 for each 5 minutes of obstruction in
2 excess of 25 minutes of obstruction.
3 (2) Other Operational Requirements.
4 (a) Bell and Whistle-Crossings. Every rail carrier
5 shall cause a bell, and a whistle or horn to be placed
6 and kept on each locomotive, and shall cause the same to
7 be rung or sounded by the engineer or fireman, at the
8 distance of a least 1,320 feet, from the place where the
9 railroad crosses or intersects any public highway, and
10 shall be kept ringing or sounding until the highway is
11 reached; provided that at crossings where the Commission
12 shall by order direct, only after a hearing has been held
13 to determine the public is reasonably and sufficiently
14 protected, the rail carrier may be excused from giving
15 warning provided by this paragraph.
16 (b) Speed Limits. Each rail carrier shall operate
17 its trains in compliance with speed limits set by the
18 Commission. The Commission may set train speed limits
19 only where such limits are necessitated by extraordinary
20 circumstances effecting the public safety, and shall
21 maintain such train speed limits in effect only for such
22 time as the extraordinary circumstances prevail.
23 The Commission and the Department of Transportation
24 shall conduct a study of the relation between train
25 speeds and railroad-highway grade crossing safety. The
26 Commission shall report the findings of the study to the
27 General Assembly no later than January 5, 1997.
28 (c) Special Speed Limit; Pilot Project. The
29 Commission and the Board of the Commuter Rail Division of
30 the Regional Transportation Authority shall conduct a
31 pilot project in the Village of Fox River Grove, the site
32 of the fatal school bus accident at a railroad crossing
33 on October 25, 1995, in order to improve railroad
34 crossing safety. For this project, the Commission is
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1 directed to set the maximum train speed limit for
2 Regional Transportation Authority trains at 50 miles per
3 hour at intersections on that portion of the intrastate
4 rail line located in the Village of Fox River Grove. If
5 the Regional Transportation Authority deliberately fails
6 to comply with this maximum speed limit, then any entity,
7 governmental or otherwise, that provides capital or
8 operational funds to the Regional Transportation
9 Authority shall appropriately reduce or eliminate that
10 funding. The Commission shall report to the Governor and
11 the General Assembly on the results of this pilot project
12 in January 1999, January 2000, and January 2001. The
13 Commission shall also submit a final report on the pilot
14 project to the Governor and the General Assembly in
15 January 2001. The provisions of this subsection (c),
16 other than this sentence, are inoperative after February
17 1, 2001.
18 (3) Report and Investigation of Rail Accidents.
19 (a) Reports. Every rail carrier shall report to the
20 Commission, by the speediest means possible, whether
21 telephone, telegraph, or otherwise, every accident
22 involving its equipment, track, or other property which
23 resulted in loss of life to any person. In addition,
24 such carriers shall file a written report with the
25 Commission. Reports submitted under this paragraph shall
26 be strictly confidential, shall be specifically
27 prohibited from disclosure, and shall not be admissible
28 in any administrative or judicial proceeding relating to
29 the accidents reported.
30 (b) Investigations. The Commission may investigate
31 all railroad accidents reported to it or of which it
32 acquires knowledge independent of reports made by rail
33 carriers, and shall have the power, consistent with
34 standards and procedures established under the Federal
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1 Railroad Safety Act, as amended, to enter such temporary
2 orders as will minimize the risk of future accidents
3 pending notice, hearing, and final action by the
4 Commission.
5 (Source: P.A. 90-187, eff. 1-1-98; 91-675, eff. 6-1-00.)