San Jose: Bus with elderly passengers clipped by train; no one injured

A bus carrying 20 to 30 elderly passengers in San Jose was hit by a slow-moving Union Pacific train Friday, but no one was injured.

San Jose fire Capt. Chuck Rangel said the nose of the bus was "clipped" by the train at 8:07 a.m. at Old Bayshore Highway at North Tenth Street.

"The bus was creeping toward the tracks as the train was coming," Rangel said. "The train was going about 2 mph and blew its horn." The bus was headed to an adult day-care center in Milpitas.

One passenger was evaluated at the scene and declined medical treatment, Rangel said. "At this point, we know the engineer sounded the horn to alert drivers at the crossing, and we do not know why the driver of the van did not stop," Union Pacific spokeswoman Raquel Espinoza-Williams said in an e-mail. "We are investigating the matter further."

Espinoza-Williams said the railroad-crossing sign is the equivalent of a yield sign. The crossing is also equipped with flashing red lights to warn drivers.

Becky Kim, program director for the Prestige Adult Day Health Care in Milpitas, said a woman in her 70s was complaining of back pain and was taken to a doctor for evaluation.

"It's so good no one was really hurt,'' Kim said. "That's the most important thing.''

The driver was picking up San Jose residents to take them to the center.

The accident scene revealed that the bus was on North Tenth Street at a signal-light intersection, trying to cross Old Bayshore.

In addition to San Jose police, Union Pacific officers also responded. The railroad has its own police department.

None of the officers on the scene would talk about the collision. But a Union Pacific police officer was overheard saying that even if drivers have a green light, they have to heed the flashing railroad lights and alarms to give way to trains.