What if it were possible to see a railway crossing before you've reached it?

Imagine the safety implications. If you were driving and knew that you were approaching a highway-railway crossing, you'd have extra time to prepare to act safely. Well, in Britain imagination just became reality. As part of International Level Crossings Awareness Day on June 9, Network Rail, the organization responsible for running, maintaining and developing Britain's railway infrastructure, announced the release of a new application, for use with satellite navigation systems, that will warn drivers of approaching level crossings. Developed in association with Garmin, the application works by warning drivers with a cheery train whistle and an on-screen ‘X’ when they approach a level crossing. Check out this video for a preview of this new and exciting technology in action: [youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tVzrhxtjE2M&feature=player_embedded[/youtube] Network Rail and Garmin are also exploring the possibility of developing an intelligent version where motorists can choose routes that avoid level crossings or change their route to avoid a level crossing where the barriers are down if there is a quicker alternative route available. Here at Operation Lifesaver, we're very excited about this new technology. We'll be paying close attention to when it becomes available in Canada and we'll let you know when that happens. Until then, remember: look, listen, live.