OPD to bring CSX safety program to Oxford
BY RACHEL WADDICK
OCT. 10, 2007

She was hit by the CSX freight train crossing on Locust Street at approximately 1:30 a.m., but her body was not found until another train passed an hour and a half later.

The death of 19-year-old Miami University student Beth Speidel was all anyone could talk about throughout the month of April, and according to Sgt. Jim Squance, it hit close to home with a lot of students.

According to Squance, the CSX route that runs through Oxford is a major one, with “hundreds” of trains passing through weekly.

It is the combination of constantly busy tracks and a high-density, college community that makes a CSX safety program so beneficial.

“A lot of students figured if it could happen to [Speidel], it could happen to them too,” Squance said. “And, to be honest, they’re right.”

The program itself was initiated at the University of Delaware, where a student was hit by a train and killed on frequently busy tracks owned by CSX. The similar situation that the University of Delaware and Miami University shared made the Oxford Police Department, along with other concerned members of the community such as the Marianne Marconi, the Talawanda School District director of guidance.

Marconi’s responsibilities include a position on the Coalition for a Healthy Community leadership team member. To maintain and foster a healthy community for both Miami University and the Talawanda School District, Marconi believes that a train safety program is a necessity.

“Any information that can be shared to increase awareness of safety as it applies to movement around railroad tracks and trains is of great benefit,” she stated.

Amy Macechko, the Talawanda School District’s health and wellness coordinator agrees.

“This could be a very proactive measure in ensuring the safety of our students in the Talawanda District and the Oxford community in general. We want to make sure that we’re providing students with the information that they need to make smart, healthy choices.”

Miami University Panhellenic’s association has also expressed interest in the safety program.

“We want to provide our members with valuable information about the risks that are inherent in many of the evening activities that students choose to partake in,” Amanda Makulec, Panhellenic’s vice president, stated. “While we feel these issues are relevant to all Miami students, we want to give our members a special opportunity to talk about them in a candid way and learn valuable skills about how to deal with tricky situations they might encounter.”

In the past, CSX has been very willing to participate in safety programs in the Oxford area. The Respect for Law camp, which takes place each summer in Oxford for kids in elementary and middle school, has long enjoyed such sessions.

“Kids from all over Butler County come to [the Respect for Law camp] to become familiar with law enforcement and what we do,” Squance said. “In the past, CSX has actually taken a train and a car and simulated an accident. It demonstrates a real life situation where these kids can view what happens if you don’t practice good train safety.”

The problem is that this current CSX program has yet to come to fruition. The Talawanda School district, Miami University, and the Panhellenic association have all expressed interest, but Squance has expressed frustration at having difficulty reaching representatives from CSX to get the program off the ground.

“We’ve never had trouble contacting them before,” Squance said. “They’ve been very cooperative in the past.”

James Dugger, an employee of the CSX Railroad Police who has worked with Squance and the OPD in safety sessions before, did not return numerous phone calls, and neither did Rick D. Schipley, who initiated a CSX scholarship in Speidel’s name

And accidents are anything but foreign to the “largest railroad in the eastern United States.” According to the Railroad Crossing Accident Firm, in 2006 alone, there were 610 accidents involving CSX trains.

With such a significant number of accidents last year, and to prevent any more from affecting the Oxford community, Squance hopes that eventually the safety program will eventually come about.

“My job is to make a program that [the entire community] can be active in. Hopefully, once this program gets started, we can make Oxford a safer place for residents and students alike.”