Railroad Track Workers

Trains are quiet, fast and can’t stop. A loaded freight train can take a mile or more to stop. Railroad track workers and contractors working near tracks depend on strict on-track safety rules to keep from being struck.

• Railroads
• Contractors near tracks
• Utilities

Fouling the track

You’re “fouling the track” when you or your equipment could be struck by a train or by something on it. Under federal rules, that generally means being within 4 feet of the field side of the nearest rail. Fouling the track without on-track safety protection is forbidden.

On-track safety

• Training: roadway workers must be trained in on-track safety under the Federal Railroad Administration’s roadway worker protection rules.
• Job briefing: before fouling a track, every worker must be briefed on the type of protection, the limits and how trains will be stopped or warned.
• Protection: working limits authorized by the railroad (track and time, track permits), or train approach warning by watchmen/lookouts with enough warning time to clear the track.
• Clear to a safe place well before a train arrives, on the side of the track your briefing names.

Rules to live by

• Expect a train on any track, at any time, in either direction
• Watch out for trains on adjacent tracks while clearing
• Don’t step on rails, switches or ties; they’re slippery and can trap a foot
• Don’t cross between cars or under standing equipment
• Stay off tracks on bridges and in tunnels without protection
• Watch for overhead electrified lines (catenary) on some lines

Hi-rail vehicles and equipment

• Only qualified operators run hi-rail vehicles and on-track machines.
• Keep proper spacing between machines and stay out of the swing radius of rail cranes.

Last updated: October 2, 2026