Cyclist injured after being struck by SMART train in Rohnert Park

A bicyclist was injured after being struck Tuesday afternoon by a southbound SMART train in Rohnert Park, causing minor delays on the system.

The cyclist had ridden past the flashing red lights and lowered barrier gates, according to witnesses.

Julia Gonzalez, a spokesperson for Sonoma-Marin Area Rail Transit, confirmed the bike rider was struck by a southbound train around 3:45 p.m., near the Rohnert Park Expressway. The resulting injuries were not reported to be life threatening.

None of the train’s 17 passengers or two crew members were injured.

One passenger on the train, who asked not to be identified, said that conductor had braked suddenly, and sounded the train’s horn repeatedly in the seconds before impact.

Looking out the window, she saw first responders attending to the man who had been hit. “They cut off, it looked like four or five layers of his clothing,” said the woman, who recalled that one of the bicyclist’s legs appeared to be injured.

Rohnert Park police responded, and took over the scene. One officer declined to comment on the incident, saying, authorities would first want to “look at the video” before providing an account of what happened.

The incident caused a 25-minute delay to SMART trip No. 27, which had left the Airport Station at 3:25 p.m.. It also delayed Trip 20, a northbound train forced to stop while first responders helped the injured man.

On Nov. 3, a 42-year-old man died after he was hit by a SMART train on Golf Course Drive, about 1.5 miles north of Tuesday’s incident. The prior collision remains under investigation.

Since SMART began service in August 2017, there have been 23 incidents where trains have struck people, whether on foot or in vehicles. Those have resulted in 16 fatalities. Eight of those deaths were determined to be suicides.

You can reach Staff Writer Austin Murphy at 707-521-5214 or austin.murphy@pressdemocrat.com or on Twitter @ausmurph88.