Metrolinx to install anti-trespass panels on two lines

Feb. 6, 2020
The expanded use of ATPs follows a successful pilot program of the components that are designed to deter pedestrians from trespassing on rail property.

Metrolinx will be installing anti-trespass panels (ATPs) at 18 high-risk crossings on the Lakeshore East and Lakeshore West corridors to reduce pedestrian trespassing incidents.

ATPs were successfully piloted at three locations last year where pedestrians were known to illegally and unsafely traverse tracks. The specialized hard rubber panels proved effective, according to a blog the agency recently published.

The blog quoted Metrolinx Manager of Track Infrastructure Robert Netopilik as saying, “Almost immediately we noticed a distinct drop in the number of pedestrians in the railway corridor.”

Metrolinx notes there is only one slight difference between the ATPs used in the pilot project and the ones to be installed on the Lakeshore corridors: the new ATPs have been made even more difficult to walk across due to a design change to their peaks. The pilot project used ATPs with pointed peaks and the ones on the Lakeshore corridors will use rounded peaks.

“The goal of the ATPs is to minimize delays, increase the safety for the public and to better secure Metrolinx’s owned corridors,” the agency noted in its blog.

Last summer, the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) published a technical report on ATPs and found they were effective at the evaluated locations, but FRA noted additional study would be needed before it made wider recommendations on the use of ATPs.

To read Metrolinx's full blog is available on its website.  

About the Author

Mischa Wanek-Libman | Editor in Chief

Mischa Wanek-Libman serves as editor in chief of Mass Transit magazine. She is responsible for developing and maintaining the magazine’s editorial direction and is based in the western suburbs of Chicago.

Wanek-Libman has spent more than 20 years covering transportation issues including construction projects and engineering challenges for various commuter railroads and transit agencies. She has been recognized for editorial excellence through her individual work, as well as for collaborative content. 

She is an active member of the American Public Transportation Association's Marketing and Communications Committee and serves as a Board Observer on the National Railroad Construction and Maintenance Association (NRC) Board of Directors.  

She is a graduate of Drake University, where she earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in Journalism and Mass Communication with a major in magazine journalism and a minor in business management.