InvestigateTV - Season 2; Episode 26
(InvestigateTV) — This Week on InvestigateTV: Children forced to crawl under and over trains. Emergency responders stalled at railroad crossings during life threatening situations. Stopped trains splitting communities apart. “Railroaded” - a joint InvestigateTV and ProPublica investigation - exposed America to chilling footage showing young students forced to make an unthinkable choice: be late to school or crawl under freight trains that block their pathway. WHERE TO WATCH ICYMI – Watch last week’s episode.
Railroaded: Across America, trains are stopping on tracks and blocking roadways – sometimes for hours. In some cases, as our cameras caught on video, children are dangerously crossing stopped trains, crawling under the cars to get to and from school. In others, emergency responders are unable to quickly reach people in danger. In this story, we partner with ProPublica to look at the tens of thousands of complaints to the federal government about blocked crossings, talk to people in towns where trains frequently stop – plus question lawmakers and Transportation Secretary Buttigieg about what can be done.
Potential Solution in the Works: Just weeks after an InvestigateTV/ProPublica investigation highlighted the life-threatening consequences of blocked rail crossings in Hammond, Indiana, the city’s mayor said there is a likely solution in the works.
Investigation into Blocked Crossings gets Results: Stopped trains are forcing children to decide between going to school or climbing over or under trains that could move at any moment. Our team’s reporting on this situation and dramatic video stunned lawmakers and citizens across the country – prompting action and a greater call for change. In this story, we look at new federal proposals designed to protect kids impacted by blocked crossings, speak to Sen. Raphael Warnock, the mayor of a town we profiled where trains stop frequently, and a union representing railroad workers about what can be done.
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