Abstract: An invention is presented that expedites cause, fault and liability litigation of rail-highway crossing mishaps by providing a digital audio and video record of the events at the crossing as the locomotive or rail vehicle approaches and passes through the intersection. The electrical system components are located on and within the locomotive and can be powered exclusively by resources available from the locomotive. In addition, the invention may automatically and spontaneously inspect the operational status of the rail-highway crossing gate by capturing and processing the digital images of the gate by computational methods programmed in the locomotive's on-board computer. Alternatively, the images or video could be transmitted to a remote station for processing or inspection.