A History of Operation Lifesaver

Operation Lifesaver started in Idaho in 1972 after the national average of fatalities at highway-rail grade crossings had escalated to 12,000 annually. Through the combined efforts of Ed Schafer and Sam Grayson of the Union Pacific Railroad, the Idaho Peace Officers and Governor Cecil Andrus' office, a six-week public awareness campaign called "Operation Lifesaver" was initiated as a one-time, one-state endeavor.

During the new campaign's first year, Idaho's crossing-related fatalities dropped by 43 percent. The next year, the Operation Lifesaver campaign spread to Nebraska, and the collision rate was reduced by 26 percent. When Kansas and Georgia experienced similar success the following year, U.S. Senator Kay Bailey Hutchinson (then Vice-Chairman of the National Transportation Safety Board) urged the nation's transportation community to take the program nationwide. Minnesota's Operation Lifesaver program was initiated in 1982. By 1986 all 49 of the continental states had started independent Operation Lifesaver programs.

To assist in coordinating the mission, message and activities among the autonomous state programs of Operation Lifesaver, a national program was established under the auspices of the National Safety Council (NSC) in 1978. In 1986, the national program was released from NSC and established itself as Operation Lifesaver, Inc. (OLI), a national, not-for-profit organization. Founding sponsors included the Association of American Railroads, the National Railroad Passenger Corporation (Amtrak) and the Railway Progress Institute.

A year after incorporation, in 1987, the board established OLI's Program Development Council, a 33-member advisory council, to bring consensus to the development and implementation of all Operation Lifesaver programs. In 1989, Operation Lifesaver, Inc. opened its national office in Alexandria, Virginia, to serve as a support and referral center for the independent state programs and to act as a liaison to the federal government, other safety organizations and the media.

Funding was secured from the Federal Railroad Administration in 1987 and the Federal Highway Administration in 1988. In 1992, the Operation Lifesaver program received a five-year funding authorization from Congress through the Intermodal Surface Transportation Efficiency Act of 1993. It provided $300,000 annually in operating funds for OLI. In 1998, OLI's funding authorization level was increased to $500,000 annually for the five-year duration of "T-21," the Transportation Equity Act for the 21st century.

Today, Operation Lifesaver's 49 state programs work with nearly 200 trainers and 3,000 volunteer presenters to deliver OL's messages on highway-rail grade crossing and pedestrian safety. Each year more than 2,000,000 Americans, including school children, business leaders, driving school teachers, professional truck and bus drivers, school bus drivers, and state fair attendees, hear the message. OL-trained and certified volunteer presenters include locomotive engineers and other railroad employees, law enforcement officers, teachers, retired people, truck drivers, students and people from all walks of life.

Operation Lifesaver's role is public safety education. OL's mission is to teach people how to make safe decisions around tracks and trains. We want drivers and pedestrians to understand the signs and signals and conditions they might encounter. Operation Lifesaver also advises people how to report highway-rail grade crossing equipment malfunctions.

As a publicly supported charitable and educational tax-exempt organization, OLI must seek diverse sources of funding and support. Operation Lifesaver receives substantial support from federal and state government agencies, private safety groups and transportation safety representatives. At the same time, railroads have a strong interest in preventing highway-rail grade crossing collisions and rail trespassing incidents and continue to support the programs of Operation Lifesaver, Inc., through contributions and in-kind services.

Source: Operation Lifesaver, Inc.

About Operation Lifesaver
Minnesota Operation Lifesaver, Inc. Board
Annual report available upon request.