CARLSBAD, Calif. (KGTV) — Video obtained by ABC 10News shows the moment a Pacific Surfliner train collided with a pickup truck at a Carlsbad railroad crossing, sending the vehicle spinning across the intersection.
Remarkably, the driver escaped with only minor injuries.
The collision happened just before 11 a.m. Monday near Grand Avenue and State Street.
Video shows a southbound Pacific Surfliner approaching the crossing as a white pickup truck pulls forward and stops on the tracks. Moments later, the train slams into the truck, sending it spinning through the crossing.
Carlsbad fire officials said the female driver was taken to a hospital and treated for minor injuries. Emergency responders have not released an initial information pointing to a case of self-harm.
Sheriff's investigators said the pickup had been traveling the wrong way before the driver attempted to cross the tracks after the crossing arms were already down.
"This could have been very tragic," said Lori Winfree, deputy CEO of the North County Transit District, who oversees rail operations.
"Every time I see a video of this nature, it's troubling," Winfree said.
The video shows the crossing arms down on the opposite side of the street as the truck moves toward the tracks. According to deputies, the pickup was traveling the wrong way before attempting to cross ahead of the train.
ABC 10News asked Winfree whether the railroad crossing equipment appeared to have been functioning correctly.
"Based on the investigation to date, everything was working as intended," Winfree said.
Winfree said drivers attempting to cross tracks despite warning signals is something rail officials continue to encounter.
"It does happen. All of us have observed it," she said.
She urged drivers and pedestrians to take railroad crossing warnings seriously.
"If the crossing arms are down, the bells are going, the lights flashing, any of those things, don't cross the tracks. A train is coming," Winfree said.
While getting out of the truck before impact did not appear possible in this case, Winfree said anyone whose vehicle becomes disabled on railroad tracks should get out as quickly as possible and move away from the tracks at a 45-degree angle in the direction of the approaching train. That can help reduce the risk of being struck by debris if a collision occurs.
"If you see tracks, think train," Winfree said.
This article was generated with the assistance of artificial intelligence and reviewed and edited by an ABC 10News journalist.
