Disclaimer: The following content discusses themes of suicide. Resources are listed at the bottom of this article for any person struggling with depression or suicidal thoughts.
Following the death of a Palo Alto High School student at the Churchill Avenue railroad crossing on Feb. 3, community members have pushed for measures to prevent further incidents on the tracks.
A Feb. 26 statement issued by the City of Palo Alto announced that officials are considering a temporary closure of the crossing, with an official update expected in mid-April. We are aware of the discussion surrounding a potential closure, as well as the varying perspectives, but even without a formal decision, we would like to applaud the measures taken thus far to combat the city’s youth mental health crisis.
Following a petition started by Paly junior Julia Curtis advocating for paid guards at each of Palo Alto’s four railroad crossings, City Council approved 24-hour crossing security according to a status update from the City of Palo Alto, and is sharing the costs with the Palo Alto Unified School District. We believe that the presence of guards who are trained to de-escalate suicide in-person will significantly improve Palo Alto’s suicide crisis. According to the United States Department of Transportation, increasing intervention reduces suicide rates.
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The city has also partnered with RailSentry by Herzog to implement sensors that detect anomalies on the tracks. Using AI-based learning software and laser lights that distinguish specific objects like people and animals, alerts are sent to locomotive engineers on trains who can stop or slow the trains in time. They also notify the nearest police station to alert officers of the situation at hand.
Coming to a conclusion on the closure of Churchill will require extensive discussion and planning, but in the meantime, we applaud the implementation of these new practices to combat a problem that has plagued Palo Alto students for years.
Resources for dealing with mental health crises
Call the 24/7 suicide and crisis hotline: 988
Crisis Text Line: Text HOME to 741741
Call The Trevor Project’s 24/7 crisis support hotline: (866) 488-7386
To volunteer for the Track Watch, email [email protected]
To donate to the Trevor Project, go to https://give.thetrevorproject.org/fundraiser/6961929