Operation Lifesaver Inc. (OLI), in partnership with the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA), announced that $200,525 in grants will be awarded to 15 state Operation Lifesaver programs for a variety of rail crossing safety and trespass prevention public education projects, many of which will be conducted in conjunction with the nonprofit safety group’s observance of Rail Safety Week, Sept. 21 to 27.

The FRA grants will be awarded to Operation Lifesaver state programs in California, Indiana, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Mississippi, Montana, New Jersey, New York, North Dakota, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, South Dakota, and Tennessee; North Carolina will receive partial funding for its grant project from FRA. Individual grant awards will range from $4,500 to $20,000.

To supplement the FRA awards, $45,000 in funding from the Posner Foundation of Pittsburgh will go towards Operation Lifesaver state grant projects in three additional states — Arizona, Texas, and Washington — and provide the balance of funding for North Carolina’s grant project.

The approved grants were awarded through a competitive process, with selection based on criteria such as successfully leveraging the federal funds with private partnerships, targeted messaging, and states with an increased number of pedestrian-train incidents and highway-rail collisions.