Regional Rail train strikes car in the first SEPTA collision of 2020

The non-fatal collision was the ninth at a SEPTA grade-crossing since 2016.

Darryl C. Murphy

January 2, 2020

SEPTA Regional Rail (Nathaniel Hamilton for WHYY)

SEPTA logged its first collision of the new decade Thursday morning when a Center City-bound SEPTA Regional Rail train crashed into a car at a Montgomery County crossing.

Two people were in the car and were treated at Abington Hospital for minor injuries. They were released Thursday. The collision disrupted an otherwise smooth first rush-hour commute of 2020.

The incident happened at a grade crossing along Paxson and South avenues in Cheltenham Township near the Jenkintown-Wyncote Station. None of the 90 people riding the train were injured, according to SEPTA.

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A train collides with a car in Wyncote @6abc pic.twitter.com/WDZFujJs0c
— Dan Sheridan (@PhotogDan6abc) January 2, 2020

The collision — the ninth at a SEPTA grade crossing since 2016 — caused some delays Thursday morning. Andrew Busch, a SEPTA spokesperson, said such crashes can derail trains and lead to larger catastrophes.

There are a total of 148-grade crossings in the Regional Rail system and trains cross them more than 5,000 times on an average weekday.

“Grade crossings are something that we’re always out in the communities trying to raise awareness about,” Busch said.

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