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Train Accidents

Ever since trains came into being, they have been an all-too-frequent cause of injury to those riding on them, working on them, and even just going near them. Before he was elected as our 16th president, Abraham Lincoln frequently represented railroads in cases resulting from the wrongful deaths, injuries, and damage they caused. Even today, they cause injuries on a regular basis, and we represent people who were injured in a number of railroad accidents:

• Injuries suffered by passengers - Railroads are considered common carriers for their passengers, which means that they are required to exercise the highest degree of care to assure the safety of their passengers from the time that they are getting on the train until they have reached a place of safety after getting off the train.  Passengers injured in train derailments on Metra, Amtrak, or the CTA are entitled to compensation.
  (Please note that for cases involving the CTA, passengers injured while riding the el must comply with the special CTA notice requirements - see our section on lawsuits and claims against the CTA for details).
• Rail crossing accidents - Railroads have an obligation to maintain crossings in a safe condition and trains are required to give warning by horn or whistle as they approach a crossing. Collisions between cars or pedestrians and moving trains often have disastrous results. Many times these accidents are due to dangerous conduct on the part of the railroad which must be carefully investigated.
• Injured railroad employees - Working for the railroad is a demanding, hazardous duty. Railroad employees for the most part are not covered by the state Worker's Compensation Act, but are instead covered by a special federal law called the Federal Employers' Liability Act, or FELA.  As a Chicago FELA lawyer, we can assist injured railroaders.  See our section on FELA for more information.

The Law Offices of
Barry G. Doyle, P.C.
100 W Monroe St.,
Ste 2100
Chicago, IL 60603

Phone: 312.263.1080
Fax: 312.263.0153

Proudly Serving Many Illinois Cities and Counties, Including:
Chicago, Aurora, Rockford, Naperville, Joliet, Waukegan, Geneva, Sycamore, Woodstock, Kankakee, Morris, Ottawa; Cook, DuPage, Will, Lake, Winnebago, DeKalb, McHenry, Kankakee, Grundy, LaSalle, Peoria, McLean, Champaign, Tazewell Counties

Blog for Train Accidents

• Railroad knew tracks washed out before Rockford derailment
• Court finds BNSF committed misconduct in railroad crossing wrongful death case
• Multiple injuries in Boston commuter train accident
• FRA releases study on causes of train accidents
• FRA considering testing train personnel for sleep apnea
• Railroad pays witnesses to try to derail jury verdict
• Rockford train derailment possibly caused due to high water
• Rockford Canadian National train derailment kills one
• Lawsuits filed in train derailment at Louisville zoo
• BNSF accused of misconduct following $20 million wrongful death verdict
• After railroad crossing wrongful death verdict, railroad accused of misconduct
• NTSB faults Amtrak and engineer in 2007 Chicago train crash

Library for Train Accidents:

• Historical review of Chicago commuter train accidents and derailments   
  Description: This review of findings by the NTSB regarding recent Chicago-area passenger train derailments and accidents shows that accidents are due to negligent operations by railroads that are responsible for passenger safety.

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Web Resources for Train Accidents:

• Federal Railroad Administration

  Description: The federal agency responsible for regulating the railroad industry.

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