Car Crash at Caltrain Crossing Delays Trains

Crews are working to repair rail and city traffic signals after a car damaged a Caltrain crossing gate in Sunnyvale on Thursday afternoon, officials said.

Deputies responded to a report of a crash at the Mary Avenue train crossing around 12:30 p.m., San Mateo County sheriff’s Deputy Sal Zuno said.

A van was heading south on West Evelyn Avenue and made a left turn to Mary Avenue, where it struck a Caltrain signal in the middle island splitting traffic into opposite directions of traffic, Zuno said.

Caltrain officials initially said the crash involved two vehicles but sheriff’s deputies clarified only one crashed. No injuries were reported and the van was damaged, according to Zuno.

Caltrain officials were notified around 12:45 p.m. of the crash, which did not involve any of their trains, Caltrain spokeswoman Jayme Ackemann said.

Southbound train No. 146 was held at the Mountain View station and northbound train No. 147 was held at the Sunnyvale station, agency officials said. Both trains were released at about 1 p.m. but were delayed by more than 30 minutes, according to agency officials.

Trains are slowing down in the immediate area where the crash occurred, Zuno said.

Caltrain crews are working to fix the signals and hope to complete repairs before the evening commute, Zuno said.

--Bay City News Service, photo via Shutterstock