Woman ‘very lucky to be alive’ after being struck by TRAIN on notorious level crossing
- Woman survives being hit by a train when her car got stuck on level crossing
- The car in front of her was ‘abandoned’ trapping her between boom gates
- It is the second time a train has hit a vehicle at Glen Iris, Melbourne in six months
A woman has somehow survived a train slamming into her car while she was stuck on a notorious level crossing on Thursday.
The woman’s Honda Civic was trapped between boom gates on the hated crossing on High Street at Glen Iris in Melbourne’s east when a train struck the back of her car, spinning it around.
She was unable to get off the crossing because another car directly ahead of her had stalled and blocked her in, causing heavy traffic to build up.
The woman’s Honda Civic was trapped between boom gates on a hated crossing on High Street at Glen Iris in Melbourne’s east when a train struck the back of her car, spinning it around
The woman’s car was smashed by a train on Melbourne’s Glen Waverley line at 12.30 on Thursday
‘The train came around the corner so quickly it didn’t have time to brake and she was in the middle of the train line,’ witness Ben described the scene to 3AW.
‘It smashed right into the back of her car, spun her right around.’
He described the aftermath, which left her car completely mangled by the impact, as a ‘complete mess’.
He said she was ‘very lucky to be alive’.
The driver was taken to hospital for observation.
Thursday’s accident was the second time in six months a train has struck a vehicle on the Glen Iris level crossing in Melbourne’s east
Tony, who works at 1533 Cellars on High Street, Glen Iris, told the Herald Sun that the driver of the car in front of her ‘abandoned’ his vehicle.
‘I was thinking that there was no way she was going to get out alive but she did,’ he said.
That caused traffic to bank up behind him, trapping the Honda Civic driver between the boom gates.
She was taken to hospital and no-one on the train was injured.
Residents of nearby Stonnington and Boroondara have campaigned for the crossing to be removed and previously launched an online petition.
‘That makes 2 [accidents there] in the last 6 months,’ said one signatory, Camille Cousins.
In August 2021 a truck and train collided on the same crossing. The 68-year-old driver was taken to hospital but survived
‘It is a dangerous site and suspect being so close to traffic lights and freeway on/off ramps is causing drivers to make risky decisions.’
In August 2021 a truck and train collided on the same crossing.
The driver of the truck, a 68-year-old man, was taken to hospital in a stable condition with multiple injuries.
”I think the community in Glen Iris would like to see this crossing gone,’ said Boroondara mayor Garry Thompson.
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