May 28, 2008 5:32 pm US/Eastern
School Bus Hit By Railroad Crossing Gate
BRAINTREE (WBZ) ―
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An image from one of the MBTA cameras that recorded the gate hitting the bus May 20.
WBZ
A school bus driver has been cited for not stopping at a railroad crossing in Braintree. The gate hit the bus, which was full of children. The entire incident was caught by MBTA surveillance cameras.
The MBTA had four cameras set up at the crossing at Commercial and Front Streets when the bus driver took a left turn as the gate came down Tuesday morning, May 20.
After the gate hit the roof of the bus, the crossing gate on the opposite side of the tracks popped up, which allowed the bus driver to move forward and clear the tracks.
The driver claimed the gate malfunctioned and came down without warning.
A witness told police that the train crossing lights began to flash before the bus turned. However, the witness also told investigators that the crossing guard waved the bus forward.
An officer took a look at the video and determined that the driver didn't stop when she should have. Investigators said the crossing equipment was also working properly.
As a result, the driver was cited and all Braintree crossing guards will be re-trained on procedures at railroad crossings. The bus route has also been changed.
Police are not identifying the bus driver because she is not charged with a crime. No one was hurt.
Thanks to a train warning system, the engineer was aware of the problem on the tracks about a half mile before it approached the crossing, possibly averting a serious tragedy.
Train engineers say they see incidents of people ignoring the crossing gate alert when a train is coming all too often. An safety system alerts the engineers when a car is hit by the gate or when there is a vehicle blocking the crossing.
"Quite off, too often in fact, you'll see cars race right up to the crossing as the gates are coming down and they will try to beat the gate," said Gerry Demodena with the Massachusetts Bay Commuter Rail. "Often what happens is the gate will come down and hit the hood of the car or sometimes the roof of the car."
Engineers say despite the alert system, drivers need to be careful because it's difficult to stop a train that is moving 50 or 60 miles per hour.
"From an engineer's perspective, watching this whole thing unfold before you – because you have limited resources for what you can actually do," Demodena said.
(© MMIX, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)
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