Cap Metro Adding Lights to Some Private Rail Crossings

Capital Metro is upgrading rail warning systems at some private MetroRail crossings.

Jeremy Barta, 32, of Austin was killed and his two children were injured when their car was hit by train at a private crossing in April.

Cap Metro now plans to install flashing warning lights at six crossings. The company will install the lights at one crossing per year for the next six years – at a cost of about $200,000 per crossing.

There are 13 private drives along the rail line, two have crossing gates; the crossing where Barta was killed did not have a gate, only a stop sign.

Cap Metro is also resurfacing the crossings so that they are all asphalt or concrete. Three of the crossings had been gravel.