At 5:28 p.m. Wednesday, an Albany police pickup is posted on the east side of the Queen Avenue rail crossing, where someone was killed about an hour before.
The Queen Avenue railroad crossing was the scene of another fatality Wednesday afternoon. I learned about it on a bike ride when I found the crossing blocked by Amtrak 11, the train from Seattle to Los Angeles, about 5:30 p.m.
The officer posted at the crossing couldn’t tell me anything. But the Democrat-Herald reported online that police had confirmed a man had been killed in a collision with the train.
The incident happened about 4:15, according to a fire department report on PulsePoint. This would have been right after the train left Albany Station.
I don’t know the circumstances of what happened.
In two other cases in recent years, young men were killed when they crossed the tracks while the crossing arms were down and the lights and bells were going.
Prompted by those fatalities, ODOT planned a project to make the crossing arms cover not just the driving lanes but the sidewalks as well. The project is still on the schedule, but construction has been postponed several times. (hh)
Amtrak Train 11 sits and waits south of Albany Station at 5:34 p.m. Wednesday, more than an hour after hitting a man on the tracks.
Why does this seem to happen so often in Albany? Prayers for the family and loved ones of this young man
Thank you for your prayers for our Family,
His Death Devastating for a large and loving family ,All prayers Greatly appreciated.
Everyone there likes to go around the gates because the switcher will stay stopped there minutes on end and half the people in this town are impatient
Is there any information to be had on the latest death at the Queen rail crossing?
Were the crossing arms down and were the lights flashing?
The sidewalks should not have to be covered with the arms, anyone with a brain knows that when the arms come down and bells ring a train is coming. Now before anyone says anything about not being sensitive, I am very sorry for the loss of that young man. I am commenting on the idea presented in the article of putting arms across the sidewalk.
I go to a crossfit gym down the side Queen St just before the tracks going east. I arrive just before 7am and leave anywhere between 8 and 9:30am M-F. The trains go by every day, several times, and train changes occur during these times also. Even though I’m in class, there are big windows we can see out and the train goes directly by! We hear the horns blowing for quite some time so we know when they are there, either south or north bound. When I am in my car arriving or leaving and a train is going or stationary over the crossing, the arms are always down and the red lights and bells are constantly ringing. Plus there are usually a line of cars waiting or stopping for the oncoming train! And there is a wide view at the Queen St crossing, a person can’t miss seeing a train! I can’t see how a person could cross those tracks without knowing a train is coming!
My thought is he may have been focussing on the switcher and didn’t realize the Amtrak was upon him. I guess we will never know.
I agree with you. The lights are flashing and arms are down Many people think they are faster than a train and go around the arms, impatient,
I’m sorry for the death of this person and their family/friends.
one would assume if the train was there,
the crossing arms down and were the lights flashing
Why do I see so many bike riders wearing headphones or earbuds? These people may be preoccupied and not aware of their surroundings. I’ve had them cut in front of me and I could have hurt one if I wasn’t paying attention! This could be one explanation for this tragedy! My heartfelt prayers go out to the police officers and EMT that had to work that one! The stuff nightmares are made of!!!❤️✝️
People either think they can beat it or they’re suicidal and they do it on purpose or they are preoccupied with something else because if he just left the station he’s not going very fast at all. I’ve ridden the trains. I know how fast they go.
“ODOT planned a project to make the crossing arms cover not just the driving lanes but the sidewalks as well.”
Waste of money because sidewalk folks will just walk under or around them, just like some vehicles will go around the crossing arms.