What Happened Before Train & Semi Collided?
Alternative content
Truck & Train Crash
What happened on state Route 161, and why is it a continuing problem?
NBC 4
GETTING ANSWERS: What happened before a train crashed into a tractor-trailer, and what is the larger traffic issue?
WORTHINGTON, Ohio—An oncoming train crashed into a tractor-trailer Wednesday afternoon and caused traffic tie-ups for hours.
What happened, and why is the traffic around the crossing a continuing issue?
NBC 4’s Mike Bowersock GOT ANSWERS on a continuing traffic problem.
A tractor-trailer driver was in heavy traffic on state Route 161 at Linworth Road on the city’s North Side.
Roger Smith dropped off a load of mulch and was heading eastbound on Dublin-Granville Road.
He was stuck on CSX railroad tracks, waiting for the vehicles in front of him to move forward.
Then there was an oncoming train.
“I saw the semi was trying to get across, and then I just heard this huge crash,” witness Joey Jackques said.
Witness Steve Bird said it, “sounded like a dumpster being dumped, but it was a lot louder.”
“The trailer got drug this way and half of it stopped there,” another witness said.
Train cars were derailed. Metal was mangled. The train’s “cow” catcher in the front caught shards of sheet metal.
The trailer was torn from the tractor and was dragged a quarter of a mile on the track.
No one was injured.
The reason Smith of South Vienna was stuck on the tracks? Gridlock.
And gridlock is not uncommon for state Route 161.
Sgt. Steve Cicero said Smith couldn’t get his tractor-trailer out of the train’s path because of the traffic in front of him.
There has been talk about putting an underpass or overpass on S.R. 161 to so drivers could avoid the tracks.
The overpass or underpass would go south of Dublin-Granville Road and meet back up with the road.
The project is not part of any current state plans, and in tight economic times, buying all of the businesses in the area to construct such a plan may not be feasible.
Police said the crash remained under investigation but it didn’t appear anyone would be charged since the gates came down after Smith was on the tracks.
The crossing reopened overnight Thursday.
For additional information, stay with NBC 4 and refresh nbc4i.com—Where Accuracy Matters.
To submit a story idea or news tip, e-mail
.
MORE: NBC 4 Local News | Local Crime News
NBC 4 SPORTS: Sports News, Video
NBC 4 POLITICS: Headlines, Interactives & Video
Advertisement
Reader Reactions
Having been a CDL examiner , the truck driver should have never been on the tracks at all. They are to wait until the truck and trailer have room the completely clear the tracks before they cross. The same goes for intersections.
Chico, the next time a you’re at a train crossing when a train goes across, look at the cluster of numbers down near the bottom of the car, and do some math. Every one of those rail cars was as much as a fully loaded semi - over 100,000 pounds in most cases. If you’ve got 60 or 80 of those all joined together, that’s over 3,000 TONS that you need to stop. It’s just not going to happen as quickly as most people think.
Yeah, the truck driver screwed up here. Badly.
Sprokets, you made some VERY good points.
along with those one should never ASSUME the crossing signals are working. and for those that don’t know, stopping a train takes much more than a car no matter what speed it is traveling at. the trucker is lucky his tractor was not on the tracks.
You are right guitarman….it is super good that no one was seriously injured or killed, a true blessing indeed.
And I am sorry sprockets…I agree with you up until you truely believe that a big rig would ever have enough clearance to go around another vehicle….that takes some manuvering 4real….now yea he should have plenty of yeilding space between him and the vehicle in front of him but he wouldn’t have been able to go around…...especially since he shouldn’t have been sitting on the tracks in the first place.
there must be more to the story we’re not hearing about if they’re really not issuing a citation. but then again, unless it’s illegal to stop on the tracks i’m not sure what they’d charge him with. just because it’s a “safety tip” doesn’t mean it’s a law. can you give someone a ticket for lack of common sense? i’m sure they could make a lot of money with that one! :)
A couple more thoughts: The rules of the road for Ohio can be found at: http://bmv.ohio.gov/driver_license/mvdigest.htm. On p. 43 under “Safety Tips on Railroad Crossing Safety,“ we find “Never dirve onto a grade crossing until you are sure you can clear the tracks.“ I find it hard to believe anyone actually has to be told this, but apparently they do.
The second thought is that even if there were no tracks, every driver is supposed to stop a safe distance behind the car in front. That safe distance should enable a driver to maneuver out from behind the car in front if that car becomes disabled, etc. Clearly the driver of the truck didn’t do this (and in fact most people don’t, but it’s still the law).
I don’t understand why the truck driver isn’t having the book thrown at him. The story makes no sense in this regard. The police say the gates went down after he went onto the tracks, but of course they did. Otherwise he wouldn’t have gone onto the tracks. And so what? Even at a crossing that doesn’t have gates a person is not allowed to stop on the tracks for any reason other than - as pointed out below - engine failure.
This trucker needs to have his/her license revoked. Common sense should tell you that you never stop on train tracks, period.
And the reporter appears to have reported what they saw and what the driver told him/her.
But this also speaks to a greater problem, the lack of common sense which is becoming more evident with drivers of motorized vehicles.
Yes the engineer on the train has a brake to pull when it is necessary to stop however think about how much time and space it takes to stop a train pulling all those cars. As the train is stopping all those cars begin to send their momentum towards the engine reducing its ability to stop.
In this case the truck driver pulled across the tracks without ensuring safe distance so that he could clear the tracks and not obstruct rail traffic. I’d be interested in knowing exactly where he dropped the load of mulch as I drive this road daily and cross the tracks morning and night.
The truck driver in this case of irresponsible and probably very inexperienced. Looking at the pictures it looks like the tractor was a rental. We should all be thankful his actions didn’t result in a loss of life and that the damage that was done can be repaired.
Dang the train operator is responsible for making sure that people abide by the rules of railroad crossings. If the lights aren’t on when you cross then you are alright, no one has any business sitting on the tracks in their vehicle unless somehow it stalled out while crossing….personally that is the only exception that I can come up with. If I were the conductor I would have went to the hospitol too complaining of back and neck injuries…noone should’ve ever been in their way.
ITS TRUE THE DRIVER SHOULD HAVE LEFT MORE ROOM, BUT THEY SAID THE TRAIN WAS ONLY GOING 10-15 MI PER HR. DOESN’T THE TRAIN DRIVER HAVE A BRAKE THEY CAN PULL?
SURELY IF THEY WERE PAYING ATTENTION THEY COULD HAVE STOPPED
Advertisement