Metra UP-W trains delayed after woman, possibly blinded by sun, drives under crossing gate and hits train

A freight train struck a car that drove under a crossing gate Thursday in Wheaton, delaying Metra Union Pacific West trains in the western suburb.

The collision happened about 11:55 a.m. at West Street, according to Wheaton Police Deputy Chief Bob Miller and a Metra spokesman.

A woman drove her Mazda under a crossing gate and struck the front of the car against a passing freight train, Miller said. The front grill of her car was thrown.

The woman was taken by paramedics to a hospital with “very minor injuries,” he said.

“She may have been blinded by the sun,” according to Miller, although he said that was still under investigation.

Trains were running with 20 to 35 minute delays after crews removed the car from the tracks, Metra said.