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U.S. Department of Transportation U.S. Department of Transportation Icon United States Department of Transportation United States Department of Transportation

Reducing Rail Trespassing and Suicide Events Safety Advisory 25-1

Overview

Trespasser- and suicide-related events have been steadily increasing in the transit industry and are the leading source of transit-related fatalities. In December 2022, FTA addressed this growing concern by publishing SA 22-4: Suicide Prevention Signage on Public Transit to encourage transit agencies to implement, update, or expand suicide prevention signage and messaging campaigns that apply best practices for reducing suicide attempts.

Given the increase in trespasser- and suicide-related events, FTA issued  Safety Advisory 25-1: Reducing Rail Trespassing and Suicide Events, which recommends that State Safety Oversight Agencies (SSOAs) direct rail transit agencies (RTAs) in their jurisdiction to use their Safety Management Systems to identify hazards, perform safety risk assessments and identify safety risk mitigations to reduce safety risk associated with trespassing and suicide events.

Background

Trespasser- and suicide-related events account for 50 percent of all fatalities reported to the National Transit Database (NTD) in calendar year 2024. When comparing 2016 to 2024, rail suicide and trespass safety events, fatalities, and injuries steadily increased:

  • Rail suicide and trespass events increased 71 percent 
  • Fatalities increased 70 percent 
  • Injuries increased 65 percent 

FTA analyzes trespasser and suicide-related events together due to the overlap of events that may be considered both trespassing and suicide, and risk mitigations for these events. These events include:

  • Customers intentionally jumping, walking or lying in front of trains
  • Individuals trespassing on the rail right-of-way from station platforms
  • People entering tunnels or track areas to shelter, resulting in collisions or electric shock 

Data

Figure 1: Rail Trespasser and Suicide Major Events, Fatalities, and Injuries, Calendar Years (CY) 2016–2024[1]

Rail Trespasser and Suicide Major Events, Fatalities, and Injuries, Calendar Years (2016-2024)

In this expanded analysis of rail trespassing and suicide major events, FTA has organized safety major event data reported to the NTD into the following categories:  

  • Suicide Collisions: Collisions involving trains where the person attempting suicide is injured or killed.  The individual may or may not have also been trespassing during the event. 
  • Non-Suicide Trespasser Collisions: Collisions involving trains where a person who was trespassing at the time of the collision was injured or killed as a result of the event, but no person involved attempted or died by suicide.[2]
  • Non-Collision Trespasser and Suicide Events: Events that do not involve a collision with a train but where a person is injured or killed as the result of trespassing or a suicide attempt.[3]  People injured or killed during these events could potentially be attempting suicide and trespassing at the same time. 

From 2016 to 2024,[4] the rail transit industry experienced a significant increase in the rate of trespassing and suicide events. The rates presented below reflect major safety event reports to the NTD as of April 30, 2025, from rail modes under FTA safety jurisdiction.[5] Data is presented per 100 million vehicle revenue miles (VRM). 

Figure 2: Rail Trespasser and Suicide Major Event Rate, Calendar Years (CY) 2016–2024

Figure 2: Rail Trespasser and Suicide Major Event Rate, Calendar Years (CY) 2016–2024

Figure 3: Rail Trespasser and Suicide Major Events by Category, CY 2016 to 2024

Rail Trespasser and Suicide Major Events by Category, CY 2016 to 2024

  • Non-Suicide Trespasser Collisions have increased from 2016 to 2024 (these include collisions with rail vehicles that have not been confirmed as an attempted suicide and involve trespassers who have entered the rail right-of-way (ROW)).  Further analysis demonstrates:

    • The annual number of Non-Suicide Trespasser Collisions that occur within station limits increased from 20 to 100 from 2016 to 2024.

    • The annual number of Non-Suicide Trespasser Collisions occurring at surface-level grade crossings and intersections increased from 5 to 20 over the same period.

  • Suicide Collisions and Non-Collision Trespasser and Suicide Events have fluctuated since 2016, with no notable downward trend in events.

Figure 4: Rail Trespasser and Suicide Fatalities by Category, CY 2016 to 2024

Figure 4: Rail Trespasser and Suicide Fatalities by Category, CY 2016 to 2024

Figure 5: Rail Trespasser and Suicide Injuries by Category, CY 2016 to 2024

Figure 5: Rail Trespasser and Suicide Injuries by Category, CY 2016 to 2024

[1] More information on the major event, fatality, and injury thresholds and definitions used in NTD reporting is available in the NTD Safety and Security Report Policy Manual. 
[2] This category also includes collisions where the NTD event report did not include any trespasser fatalities or injuries but did contain categorical data indicating that the transit vehicle collided with a person outside a motor vehicle who was not a transit worker, and that the collision occurred on exclusive rail right-of-way away from intersections, grade crossings, or any transit agency facility, including but not limited to transit stations and stops. 
[3] This category excludes categorized security events, including but not limited to assaults, hijackings, and homicides, where a person injured or killed was attempting suicide, died by suicide, and/or was trespassing at the time of the event. 
[4] Calendar Year 2024 data are preliminary and subject to NTD reporter revision. 
[5] Rail modes include cable car, heavy rail, hybrid rail, inclined plane, light rail, monorail / automated guideway, and streetcar modes. 

Best Practices and Resources

The Federal Transit Administration (FTA) has gathered rail trespassing and suicide event resources to support the transit industry in the prevention of rail trespassing and suicide events. 

These resources include reports, webinars, videos, web pages, and other tools offered by FTA, Federal Railroad Administration (FRA), the Transportation Research Board, VOLPE, transit agencies, and other organizations. Agencies may consider using these resources to assist in maximizing safety performance and mitigating risks, as appropriate.  

Transit agencies may choose to develop their safety risk mitigations across the foundational “3 Es” safety framework: engineering solutions to prevent access and mitigate risk, education to intervene early, and enforcement and partnerships for coordinated response. Additional information about the “3 Es” safety framework can be found in FTA Report No. 0227: Mitigations for Trespasser and Suicide Fatalities and Injuries.  

Transit agencies may also refer to the Transit Advisory Committee for Safety (TRACS) Trespass and Suicide Prevention Final Report for relevant information. Transit agencies may also reference FTA Safety Advisory 22-4 for information concerning suicide prevention signage on public transit.   

DISCLAIMER: The following list is provided for illustration purposes only.  The U.S. government, including FTA, neither endorses nor guarantees in any way the external organizations, services, advice, or products included in these website links.  Furthermore, the U.S. government neither controls nor guarantees the accuracy, relevance, timeliness, or completeness of the information contained in non-government website links.  If you select a link to an outside website, you are leaving the DOT.gov website and are subject to the privacy and security policies of the external website. 

Engineering Solutions to Prevent Access and Mitigate Risk  

Site-Specific Projects 

  • NJ Transit (2024) plans to implement AI-powered safety systems on light rail vehicles and at grade crossings. 

  • The MTA Track Trespassing Task Force report (2022) discusses pilot programs for blue lighting at stations as a suicide prevention tool, as well as platform screen doors that create a barrier between the trackway and passengers, and the implementation of Track Intrusion Detection Systems (TIDS), which utilize laser technology. 

  • Metrolinx, Ontario, Canada (2020) installed rail corridor anti-trespassing mats that are nearly impossible to walk over and make people think twice before they trespass into the rail corridors. 

Detection Technologies 

  • Transportation Research Board (TRB) Webinar: Deter Trespassing on Rail Rights of Way and Improve Grade Crossing Safety (January 2025) shares techniques and treatments to employ in deterring trespassing, ranging from physical barriers to public outreach and education.  Presenters discussed the deployment of electronic surveillance through rail crossing cameras and other devices to monitor grade crossing activity and provide alerts for actions. 

Other 

  • The Metra (Illinois) safety website outlines Metra’s Rail Safety and Community Awareness initiatives aimed at improving rail safety throughout its system, including numerous programs that incorporate the three Es: education, engineering, and enforcement activities. 

  • The Centre for Research and Intervention on Suicide (CRISE) Railway Suicide Prevention and Reduction of Negative Consequences website provides railway stakeholders in Canada and around the world with relevant scientific information to improve the prevention of railway fatalities and to promote the sharing of information among railway network stakeholders regarding suicide prevention and support.

Education and Engagement to Intervene Early 

Public Awareness Campaigns 

  • Network Rail and British Transport Police (United Kingdom) Railway Safety Campaigns include links to a series of national campaigns on rail safety. 

  • The International Union of Railways (France) Trespass and Suicide Prevention web page includes information on various safety campaigns/projects, including the Trespass and Suicide Prevention Network (TreSP-Network), the RESTRAIL project, and the Trespass Awareness Day campaign. 

Frontline Staff Training 

  • Riverside County Transportation Commission (California) presented the video, Suicide Prevention–Everyone Plays a Part, to staff in 2023 to learn to identify warning signs of suicide near rail and highway facilities. 

Mental Health First Aid and De-Escalation Strategies 

  • FTA’s Mental Health Resources for Transit Workers web page highlights numerous resources from the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), National Institute of Mental Health, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), and other organizations. 

  • Suicide and Mental Health Crisis Intervention on Transit Webinar featured guest speakers from the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, San Francisco Suicide Prevention, Bay Area Rapid Transit and Utah Transit Authority who shared tools and resources available, and experiences and lessons learned from successful interventions.   

  • SAMHSA provides mental health resources related to trauma and violence, suicide and crisis, mental illness and substance abuse, disaster preparedness, response, recovery and mitigation, and more.  The SAMHSA 988 Partner Toolkit contains stickers, magnets, fact sheets, FAQs, and Key Messages that agencies can use to publicize the resources that are available to support the industry. 

Other 

  • Rail Suicide Prevention Resource Page provides the public, Federal Railroad Administration (FRA), rail carriers, and suicide prevention researchers with a comprehensive view of why rail suicides happen in the U.S., where and when they are most likely to occur, and how to prevent them. 

  • Global Railway Alliance for Suicide Prevention (GRASP) is a working group composed of FRA, VOLPE, and the Association of American Railroads members.  GRASP meets twice a year to share best practices and research related to preventing rail suicides.  The web page shares recent outcomes, next steps, meeting notes, and suicide prevention resources.

Enforcement and Partnerships for Coordinated Response  

Public Campaigns and Reporting Tools 

  • Operation Lifesaver provides rail safety public education programs in States across the U.S. with the goal of preventing collisions, injuries, and fatalities on and around railroad tracks and highway-rail grade crossings.  Their website offers PSA messages and materials for public awareness campaigns, as well as specific educational materials for first responders, children, media, new drivers, photographers, school bus drivers, teachers, transit riders, and professional drivers.  Additional available information on the website includes the following topics: Track Safety Basics, Driving Safely Near Tracks, Passenger and Transit Rail Safety, and Walking Safely Near Tracks. 

  • Rail Transit Safety Education Public Awareness Grants promote public awareness and safety education in communities near rail transit lines, including: 

    • Launching a new safety campaign “One Ear Out” to raise awareness about the dangers of trespassing and crossing tracks illegally (Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority). 
    • Promoting light rail safety at in-person events around sports facilities, adding new station signage, and conducting social media outreach (Hampton Roads Transit). 
    • Using engaging and fun ways to promote trespassing prevention and grade crossing safety messages, such as a Rail Safety Passport, coloring book and storybook teaching for youth (Metro-North Railroad). 

  • North Carolina Department of Transportation’s BeRailSafe campaign is aimed at educating both children and adults about the dangers of being on and around railroad tracks.