Bicyclist struck by train at Seventh and B streets in Modesto

A 34-year-old man suffered traumatic injuries and was taken to a local hospital in critical condition after being struck by a train at Seventh and B streets in Modesto late Monday morning.

Witnesses said the man was bicycling southwest on B Street, approaching the Union Pacific tracks just east of Seventh Street. The crossing bars were down and warning lights were flashing, but the cyclist went around the arms and was struck by a southbound train, which stopped on the bridge over the Tuolumne River.

“It appears he may have tried to beat the train,” said Modesto Police Department spokeswoman Heather Graves. Two witnesses, John Downey and Jerry Dover, who were stopped in traffic in the northbound lanes of Seventh Street just south of B Street, said the victim was riding slowly and appeared not to have heard the train coming.

Headphones at the scene appear to be the victim’s, Graves said. The man might not have looked north to see how close the train was, she said, but would have had to see the flashing lights and closed crossing bars.

The man’s bicycle was mangled and remained on the tracks as emergency medical responders performed CPR on him on the east side of the tracks until an ambulance arrived. The victim was taken to Doctors Medical Center, said Modesto Fire Department Battalion Chief Hugo Patino.

The stretch of track that runs through Modesto has the highest train-vs.-pedestrian fatality rate in the nation, according to Union Pacific. Graves said Modesto police and the Union Pacific Police Department have teamed up on more than one occasion to ride the rails up and down Modesto to educate – and sometimes cite – pedestrians, cyclists and motorists who go around markings or crossing arms to try to beat trains.

The violations are more common with people on foot or bike than in motor vehicles, Graves said. “It’s crazy the number of people who walk or ride their bikes around the crossing arms.”

And many people don’t realize the huge distance it takes even a slow-moving train to come to a stop, Graves said. “There’s a marking system for each town, and they have to blow their horn so many times before each intersection,” she said. The repeated blaring may sound obnoxious, she said, but it’s an important warning measure.

This story was originally published June 13, 2016 at 12:59 PM with the headline "Bicyclist struck by train at Seventh and B streets in Modesto."