Palatine driver cited in minor collision with Metra train

A 52-year-old Palatine woman has been cited with disobeying a railroad signal after a Metra train hit her vehicle late Thursday night.

The woman, who was the sole occupant of the vehicle, was unharmed when outbound Union Pacific/Northwest Line Train No. 657 hit her 2010 Ford Fusion at about 8:30 p.m. at Quentin Road.

Police said the driver was headed northbound but stopped on the south side of the crossing. As the train approached, the Ford was sitting between the activated railroad warning arm and the tracks, with its front bumper hanging in the path of the train.

Police credited the alertness and quick action of the Metra engineer, who brought the train almost to a complete stop before clipping the vehicle.

The train wasn’t going very fast because it had just pulled away from the Palatine station, less than a mile east. The damage to the woman’s vehicle was so minor that it was drivable, police said.

The train, which was due in Crystal Lake at 8:55 p.m., was delayed about an hour.

Staff writer Lee Filas contributed to this report.