Train scrapes front of car in Palatine

A Palatine woman who got caught in traffic too close to the railroad tracks Wednesday morning had the front of her vehicle scraped by a Metra train, Palatine police said.

The 41-year-old woman was driving a Saturn Ion south on Plum Grove Road approaching the railroad crossing just north of Palatine Road about 11:30 a.m. when traffic from Palatine Road backed up to the tracks, said Palatine police Cmdr. Dave Daigle. As the train approached, the gates came down behind her and prevented her from backing fully out of the path of the train, he said.

“The train came by and scraped the front of her vehicle,” Daigle said. “It didn’t even move her vehicle.”

Nobody on the train was injured, said Meg Riele, Metra spokeswoman.

That train was delayed about 90 minutes. Light train traffic during that time meant few residual delays, she said.

The driver was cited for blocking an intersection or grade crossing, Daigle said.