April 24th through April 30th is Rail Safety Week here in Canada, and Canadian Pacific and the Canadian Pacific Police Service will spend this week educating Canadians across the country about the importance of railway safety.

There are over eleven hundred communities across the country where railway crossing are located, and CP wants to remind people to be constantly aware and vigilant around them, regardless of the time of day.

Spokesperson for CP Rail Salem Woodrow says, in communities such as Lacombe, where the railways have become such a main part of daily life, being constantly aware of the dangers of railway crossings is even more important.

"For folks that live in a community that have a lot of railway traffic, sometimes we can get a little complacent that the railway operates in our community, and that's why it require vigilance 24 hours a day. So when folks are driving in their vehicles and approaching a railway crossing, they should always look both ways, always be prepared to stop for a train. For folks that are crossing over a railway track on foot, or on a bike, they should always remember that they should only cross at designated crossings, they should always listen for a train approaching, and they should always look both ways before crossing a crossing."

Last year there were 46 pedestrians killed by trains in Canada, and a total of 133 vehicles collisions with trains, resulting in 19 fatalities and 34 serious injuries. That's up from 31 pedestrians and 14 drivers losing their lives due to train collisions in 2015.

CP rail is also adding a virtual reality component to their safety campaign this year, so that people can see what it's like to be involved in a collision with a train in virtual reality, which will in turn bring to life the dangers of railway crossings.

You can experience their virtual rail safety campaign by going to http://www.looklistenlive.ca/, or you can learn more about Rail Safety Week activities at http://operationlifesaver.ca/