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Rail Safe Houston: Tracks Are Not Shortcuts
This is a citywide safety initiative led by Houston Public Works, in collaboration with partners including Operation Lifesaver Texas. The goal is simple: keep people safe anywhere trains and Houstonians cross paths on foot, on wheels, and on the way to work, school, or home.
Every day, freight trains move through Houston’s neighborhoods, business corridors, and school zones. Many crossings sit close to homes, workplaces, churches, parks, and campuses, where people cross tracks as part of their daily routine. One rushed choice near the rails can change a life in seconds.
This initiative brings together residents, schools, businesses, neighborhood groups, and rail partners to share clear, practical rail-safety information and encourage safer behavior at railroad crossings and along rail corridors across the city.
Rail Safe Houston: Tracks Are Not Shortcuts
This is a citywide safety initiative led by Houston Public Works, in collaboration with partners including Operation Lifesaver Texas. The goal is simple: keep people safe anywhere trains and Houstonians cross paths on foot, on wheels, and on the way to work, school, or home.
Every day, freight trains move through Houston’s neighborhoods, business corridors, and school zones. Many crossings sit close to homes, workplaces, churches, parks, and campuses, where people cross tracks as part of their daily routine. One rushed choice near the rails can change a life in seconds.
This initiative brings together residents, schools, businesses, neighborhood groups, and rail partners to share clear, practical rail-safety information and encourage safer behavior at railroad crossings and along rail corridors across the city.
What it is: A public safety initiative focused on rail crossings and rail corridors in Houston.
What it focuses on: Safe behavior around trains and tracks for people walking, biking, driving, or riding transit.
Who it’s for: Anyone who lives, works, studies, shops, worships, or travels near railroad tracks in Houston — not just school-age children.
Our goal: Fewer close calls, fewer crashes, and zero tragedies from risky decisions near the rails.
Focus Area: Rail Safety Near Schools
Many Houston schools sit within a short walk or drive of active rail lines. Students, families, and staff often cross tracks on the way to classes, activities, and jobs.
Rail Safe Houston partners with campuses and school networks across the city to:
Share age-appropriate rail safety materials for students of all ages.
Provide ready-to-use social media posts and flyers for schools and parent groups.
Support communication with families about safe routes to and from school.
Highlight high-risk crossings where extra caution and education are needed.
Students are a key focus, but this work is not limited to schools. The choices that drivers, neighbors, and businesses make near those same crossings are just as important.
What’s Happening
Why We’re Focusing on Rail Safety
Houston is a rail city. Trains move heavy freight through neighborhoods and major streets day and night. Trains cannot swerve, and they cannot stop quickly. By the time a train looks close, it may already be too late for a driver or pedestrian to react.
Rail Safe Houston exists because safety around tracks depends on what we do long before a train is in front of us whether we are walking a dog, pushing a stroller, biking to class, driving to work, or waiting in a school pick-up line.
Call 911 right away for emergencies involving a train, a stalled vehicle, or a person in immediate danger.
For non-emergency concerns (damaged signs, malfunctioning gates or lights, or repeat safety issues at a crossing), call 311 or use the Houston 311 app, and provide:
The nearest address or street intersection, and
The crossing identification number, if posted, from the blue and white sign at the crossing.
