THE ELIMINATION OF GRADE-CROSSINGS IN 



CITIES 



SAMUEL TOBIAS WAGNER 



Delivered February i, 1917 



A GRADE-CROSSING is generally understood to mean the crossing of a 

 railroad by a highway when both are at the same level. The same term 

 ' is appHed to the crossing of one railroad by another at the same level. 

 It is never understood to apply to the situation of a pedestrian crossing the 

 driveway of a road or street on which vehicular traffic passes, but in a broad 

 sense this is also a grade-crossing. All are dangerous and should be ehminated 

 if possible. 



The present discussion is confined to the crossing of a railroad and a high- 

 way. It is possible to control the movements of trains where two railroads 

 cross each other, by what are known as interlocking signals, which are so ar- 

 ranged mechanically that the danger of a collision is reduced to a minimum. 

 On the other hand, the best possible protection that can be devised for a high- 

 way crossing can be defeated by reckless or careless travelers on the highway, 

 who cannot be controlled by any mechanical device, who are unwilling to heed 

 the warning to "Stop, Look and Listen," and will dodge under safety gates 

 into the path of trains approaching in plain sight, or will even drive their auto- 

 mobiles through safety gates or past a watchman trying to stop them, into the 

 sides of moving engines or trains. 



It is therefore necessary, at specially dangerous crossings, to provide an 

 absolute separation of the railroad from the highway by having one pass over 

 the other. 



I. HISTORY 



The existence of grade-crossings is a necessary evil. When railroads were 

 first constructed, in places where the grade-crossing is now in existence, there 

 was no other way in which many of them could have been built. At the time 

 the railroads were built neither the railroads nor the communities which have 

 grown into towns and finally into cities would have been able to stand the ex- 

 pense of construction, which would have avoided the crossings at grade, and 



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