Media contact: 360-664-1116 or media@utc.wa.gov
Docket number: TR-240666
LACEY, Wash. — State regulators approved $12,067.69 in funding from the Grade Crossing Protective Fund (GCPF) to purchase one aerial drone and equipment for trespass enforcement along more than ten miles of BNSF railroad tracks that run through Marysville.
The project will provide one drone to the Marysville Police Department. The device shows live aerial footage of the railroad tracks, which includes areas blocked at eye level by vegetation and buildings.
There are 23 at-grade crossings within Marysville, and 12 trespass or grade-crossing deaths have occurred along this rail line since 2012. The new drone will help law enforcement spot trespassers and respond faster to incidents along the railroad.
In 1969, the Legislature created the GCPF program to fund safety measures to reduce accidents and fatalities at public and private crossings and along railroad tracks.
The UTC regulates railroad safety, including approving new grade crossings and closing or altering existing rail crossings, investigating train accidents, inspecting public railroad crossings, approving safety projects, and managing safety education through Operation Lifesaver.
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