Indiana Motorist Seriously Injured by Louisville & Indiana Frieght Train at Non-Gated Crossing
(Edinburgh, Indiana – March 6, 2020)
An as-yet unidentified motorist was airlifted to an Indianapolis hospital following her car’s collision with a Louisville & Indiana freight train at the non-gated crossing. The collision occurred at the crossing of Louisiana & Indiana Railroad track and East County Line Road on the outskirts of Edinburgh, IN Friday afternoon about 4:11 PM. According to first responders, the driver was pinned inside her overturned vehicle until first responders were able to extricate her after a 20-minute-long ordeal. She was conscious, but hanging upside-down, still attached to her seat belt.
The collision is the third to occur at that particular crossing and the second to be suffered in Johnson County in a week. Although equipped with standard flashing lights, the crossing did not have the add visual cues that automatic gates provide. Studies have demonstrated that the installation of automatic gates to flashing light only crossings can reduce accident rates by up to two-thirds.
A daily average of two Louisiana & Indiana Railroad freight trains cross East County Line Road at a maximum allowable speed of 49 mph.
