Man killed by commuter rail train in Abington after driving around safety arm

An MBTA commuter rail train struck and killed a man in his car in Abington Wednesday after that man drove around the safety arm, Transit Police said.

The crash happened a little before 4:50 p.m. at the railroad crossing near Railroad and Birch Streets, Transit Police Superintendent Richard Sullivan said in a statement.

A preliminary investigation into the crash determined that before the crash, the safety arm went down as normal and one car stopped in front of the arm, Sullivan said.

The man who was killed drove around that car and the safety arm and onto the tracks where he was struck by an inbound train, Sullivan said. The man was pronounced dead at the scene.

There were 12 passengers on the train at the time of the crash, but no other passengers in the car that was struck, Sullivan said.

Transit Police and the Plymouth County District Attorney’s office are still investigating the crash.

“On behalf of the MBTA organization we express our most sincere condolences to the decedent’s family, friends and loved ones,” Sullivan wrote in the statement.

NBC10 Boston reported that Abington town leaders have been calling for two more safety arms to be added to the existing two at this railroad crossing to prevent people from driving or walking onto the tracks.

Want to leave a comment?

Create an Account Or sign in to your account

To comment, please create a screen name in your profile

To comment, please verify your email address

Conversation

This discussion has ended. Please join elsewhere on Boston.com