Driver on South Shore narrowly escaped before commuter train totaled his Camry

A commuter rail train in South Shore struck a vehicle on railroad tracks after the driver made a wrong turn and was forced to exit his car before the collision. 

At around 12:23 a.m. Sunday, officers responded to multiple reports of an MBTA Commuter Rail train on the Greenbush Line that struck a motor vehicle at the North Main Street grade crossing, the Cohasset Police Department said in a press release. 

Upon arrival, officers found a heavily damaged 2016 Toyota Camry on the rail bed. The driver, a 33-year-old Mansfield man delivering packages for an online delivery service, made a wrong turn onto the railroad tracks and became stuck, a preliminary investigation found. 

As the train approached, the driver was able to exit the vehicle before the collision and was not injured, police said.  The Camry was totaled, they said.

There were approximately 15 passengers aboard the train at the time of the crash. No injuries were reported among the train passengers or crew, police said. The commuter train, traveling toward Scituate, came to a stop just short of the Cohasset MBTA Commuter Rail Station. 

North Main Street was closed for more than two hours while officials investigated the crash and removed the vehicle from the railroad tracks. 

“This could very easily have been a fatal incident,” Cohasset Police Chief William Quigley said. “The driver made the critically important decision to get out of the vehicle and move away from the tracks rather than remain inside or attempt to free the car as the train approached. A vehicle can be replaced. A life cannot. We are extremely fortunate that no one was injured.”

The crash remains under investigation.