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About ME OL

What is Maine Operation Lifesaver

Maine Operation Lifesaver is a non-profit 501(c)3 public education and information program dedicated to reducing collisions, injuries, and fatalities at railroad crossings along Maine's nearly 1,200 miles of active rail lines. Maine Operation Lifesaver also works to make the public aware of the dangers of trespassing on private railroad property.

Members of the state committee include mostly current and retired officials representing Maine's railroads, private industry, Maine Department of Transportation, and the Federal Railroad Administration. These volunteers meet monthly to coordinate and carry out related presentations and projects statewide. Activities are funded primarily by the state's rail carriers.

Nationwide, Operation Lifesaver programs exist in 50 states and have contributed significantly to the more than 50 percent reduction in crashes and fatalities at railroad crossings. In Maine, statistics reveal a sharp decrease in such crashes from 23 collisions killing three and injuring nine others in 1990 to nine incidents in 2006 resulting in several injuries and one fatality. However, in Maine and elsewhere, trespassing incidents are on the rise and are a new focus of Operation Lifesaver efforts. Around the country, there were nearly 2,900 crashes in 2006, killing 368 and injuring 999 others. 530 people were killed last year in related trespassing incidents caused by such things as walking and motoring along tracks and railroad bridges, throwing objects at trains and placing objects on the tracks, and hitching joyrides on trains.


Become an Operation Lifesaver Authorized Volunteer

Maine Operation Lifesaver is an important part of an international non-profit educational organization dedicated to safety at railroad crossings and along railroad right of way. We invite you to learn more by clicking the brief video about Operation Lifesaver and welcome new volunteers with an interest in making our communities safer. Please watch the video "The Difference Starts with You" see how you can help.

Become an Operation Lifesaver Authorized Volunteer or Associate!
Help is always needed to get the OL safety message out to new and different audiences. It is our goal to have presenters in every community who can speak to driver education classes, truck drivers, school programs, etc.

If public speaking is not your thing, you can become an associate, helping get our message out at community events or model railroad display.

Volunteer Today!

Contact Us

Jeffrey Pitcher State Coordinator


P.O. Box 125
Oakfield , Maine    04763

Officers:

Chairman of the Board:

Mr. Gary Briggs, Downeast Scenic Railway

Treasurer:

Mr. R. Mike White, Belfast & Moosehead Railway

Secretary:

Mr. Tim DeRoche, Saint Lawrence & Atlantic Railway

Board Members

Ms. Gaynor Ryan, Central Maine and Quebec Railway
Ms. Norma Griffiths, Federal Railroad Administration