As part of the week-long observance, Amtrak Police and OLI will mobilize Operation Clear Track, the largest simultaneous railroad safety law enforcement operation ever attempted in the United States, involving more than 200 police or sheriff’s departments across the lower 48 states.

The one-day operation will take place during three hours on Tuesday, Sept. 26, starting at 10 a.m. ET, 9 a.m. CT, 8 a.m. MT, and 7 a.m. PT. During the operation, local, state, federal and railroad law enforcement officials will be stationed at each state’s high incident grade crossings based on preliminary data from the Federal Railroad Administration. Once on-site, officers will enforce their grade crossing laws and issue warnings and citations to violators. Law enforcement personnel will also distribute more than 240,000 railroad safety cards to motorists and pedestrians at those crossings.

“It’s critical that citizens in every corner of the country fully understand the dangers and consequences of trespassing on railroad property,” Amtrak Police Chief Neil Trugman said. “By mobilizing our forces, we hope to raise awareness, save lives and prevent injuries along the railroad rights-of-way from coast to coast.”

According to OLI, a national rail safety education nonprofit organization, each year approximately 2,000 people are killed or injured in grade crossing and trespassing incidents nationwide. Every three hours, a person or vehicle is hit by a train.

“We are proud to partner with our local law enforcement agencies to raise public awareness about using caution near train tracks, and never using the tracks as a shortcut,” Operation Lifesaver President and CEO Bonnie Murphy said. “While crossing collisions have dropped 83 percent since the first Operation Lifesaver program was started 45 years ago, this unprecedented enforcement and education event will further our mission to eliminate these preventable tragedies.”