why do people drive around railroad crossings?

I know a guy who did that, except he doesn't now. He reckoned the bells would start for no apparent reason, so he drove his truck across and found out later the trains had changed their schedule that morning. He was in exactly the same hospital room that he'd put his wife into the year before.

Many people do not realize how fast trains travel and it can be difficult to judge a train's speed. Many crossing have poor visibility for street traffic so the gate is down, drivers do not see anything or hear anything and they think they can risk going around. People engage in all sorts of dangerous behavior.

I am amazed at how often drivers think that if there is enough room to mostly get across a railroad crossing that traffic will surely move before a train arrives and they can get out of the way. I commute by train and live along the Caltrain right of way. During the course of the last three years I have seen a locomotive strike the last 5 feet of a semi trailer, and been on a train that was feet away from hitting a car stuck on the tracks at a stop light.

During the first half of 2006 over 8 people have died as pedestrians or drivers when hit by a Caltrain commute train. It is very difficult on the operators when their train kills someone. Pedestrian accidents can be very gruesomer.

These people are what I referred to as the "weeds". Sooner or later they will be "pulled". You know ... natural selection. If they have no sense of self preservasion then we are better off as a society without them.

Because even the extremely stupid think nothing bad can happen to them ... until it does. Others are thrill-seekers whose plans backfire.

Because they're to stupid to wait for the train to pass.

Because they are impatient boneheaded fools who obviously have a death wish!!!

Trains are so long, they take forever!

don't ask why just be thank full that they are out of the gene pool.

excitement seekers

because they or not very smart