(Bossier Parish, Louisiana – September 10, 2021)
A local driver of a Dodge Ram pickup truck was injured after his vehicle was struck by a KCS freight train early Friday morning at approximately 7:00 am. The collision occurred at the non-gated KCS railroad crossing that provides access to the Pecan Valley Estates Mobile Home Park. The crossing is just inside Bossier City limits. The driver of the vehicle involved in the collision was transported by EMS to Ochsner LSU Health Shreveport to be evaluated to be evaluated for his injuries.
The KCS crossing where this collision occurred accommodates a daily average of four freight trains at speeds up to 49 miles per hour. The crossing is also categorized as “private.” As a result, railroad rules do not require train crews to blow the train horn. In this collision it is unclear whether the train horn was ever timely blown to provide warning to the motorist. To compound the insufficient horn issue, the crossing lacks an essential protective device- gates. Studies have shown that the addition of gates to light only crossings can reduce collisions by up to two thirds.