New Mexico State Police: Santa Fe man struck by Rail Runner train
Dec. 8—A 70-year-old man who had been standing on the tracks of the Rail Runner Express commuter train was struck and critically injured by a southbound train Monday night near St. Michael's Drive and Warner Avenue, state police said.
New Mexico State Police Officer Dusty Francisco, a spokesman for the agency, said the Santa Fe man was taken to Christus St. Vincent Regional Medical Center, where he remained in critical condition Tuesday.
The man's identity has not been released.
Francisco said drug or alcohol use by the train engineer did not appear to be a factor in the incident.
The Santa Fe Police Department contacted state police about the incident just after 9:45 p.m. Monday, and the state agency was leading the investigation.
It was unclear why the man had been in the tracks.
August Meyers, a spokeswoman for the Rio Metro Regional Transit District, which operates the Rail Runner, noted trespassing on train tracks is a misdemeanor.
"It's trespassing to get within 25 feet of the center of the tracks on either side," she said.
The commuter train had left the downtown Santa Fe Depot around 9 p.m. and was heading south when the man was struck, Meyers said. "[The train] is usually going at about 30 mph, because its a restricted speed area."
Outside city limits, trains are typically traveling at just under 80 mph, she added.
Meyers said it is rare for a person to be struck by a train but difficult to prevent.
"It can take up to a half-mile to stop a train," she said.
