Barrington train-truck collision shows need for underpass, village leader says
Barrington's vulnerability to railroad mishaps was on display again after the rear of a semitrailer truck was clipped by a freight train Tuesday morning.
Village President Karen Darch said the collision's aftermath, which included the closings of major roads and subsequent traffic jams for nearly 2½ hours, is an example of why Barrington is pushing for an underpass at the Canadian National Railway crossing at Route 14. She expressed relief no serious injuries occurred.
“It is the worst-case scenario that we are trying to avoid by having this underpass at (Route) 14, which is our major, most-traveled strategic arterial,” Darch said. “And having had that open just would have been a tremendous relief valve for (Tuesday's) incident.”
Barrington spokeswoman Patty Dowd Schmitz said the CN freight train, which did not derail, collided with the rear section of the semi hanging over the tracks at the southbound Route 59/Hough Street crossing. The truck then was jolted into two cars.
Minor injuries were reported to the driver, who was taken to a hospital for treatment. Neither the freight train's crew nor the other drivers were injured.
Barrington police ticketed the driver for improper stopping on a railroad crossing and blocking a railroad crossing. The driver's name was not immediately available.
CN spokesman Patrick Waldron said the freight train originated in Winnipeg, Manitoba, and was transporting a variety of products to Joliet. He said lights and gates at the Route 59 crossing worked as intended.
Police closed Route 59 to traffic in both directions of Route 59 from about 8:40 to 11 a.m. Tuesday. The stopped train also blocked the Route 14/Northwest Highway crossing at Lake Zurich Road.
It could cost $62 million to build the Route 14 underpass — a potential project under discussion since 2010. The Illinois Department of Transportation last August agreed to provide $4 million to help fund land acquisition for the project.
Barrington is continuing its effort to have the federal Surface Transportation Board require CN to pay a large chunk of the cost. Barrington lawyers filed documents May 16 asking the board to reconsider a decision to not force CN to pay $37 million toward the underpass.
Waldron declined to address the underpass issue, saying the federal decisions in favor of CN speak for themselves.
In May 2013, Barrington officials cited a need for the underpass after an evening rush-hour collision between a freight train and a semitrailer truck at CN's Route 14 crossing.
Authorities said the semi didn't quite clear the crossing before getting hit by the train. Traffic was snarled for about five hours due to road and rail crossing closures.
Some local business leaders support the proposed underpass, including Suzanne Corr, president and CEO of the Barrington Area Chamber of Commerce.
Corr said employees or customers being unable to reach a business are just a couple of the problems that arise from sudden road closures from a railway incident in Barrington.
“I think local businesses have to be patient, creative and learn to live with it,” she said.