An RER hit a car that had fallen onto the tracks from a bridge at Choisy-le-Roi station. The driver of the car was seriously injured.
This Friday, May 3, the RER C hit a car which had fallen onto the tracks from a bridge near Choisy-le-Roi station (Val-de-Marne). The train hit the car on the side before managing to stop. The RER C was running normally before the driver was forced to activate emergency braking when he saw a car that had fallen from the bridge above the tracks. An extremely rare event which could have caused a major railway incident.
The driver of the car in a state of absolute emergency
According to initial reports, no passengers on the train were injured. However, the driver of the car was seriously injured. In a state of absolute emergency, he was transported to hospital by firefighters. “The driver of a ROMI train at Choisy-le-Roi station issued a safety alert to report the collision of a car which was on the track in front of him” explains the RER account X (ex-Twitter) C. “There are no injuries on board and the passengers on the train have been evacuated” says Transilien, the regional SNCF network.
A lack of anticipation at the origin of the accident?
According to a police source from France3 Paris, the driver of the car would not have anticipated a turn on the Quai Fernand Dupuy bridge. She passed through the guardrail, falling five meters lower, onto the RER C tracks. “It’s a secure place with barriers, but a car that loses control, at full speed, can pass through at through” continues an SNCF spokesperson. “He was apparently overtaking another vehicle” reports Le Parisien. Southbound traffic is severely disrupted this Friday afternoon until around 6 p.m. It was interrupted for a time between Paris-Austerlitz and Juvisy, as well as between Paris-Austerlitz and Massy-Palaiseau. “Traffic is gradually resuming on the adjoining lanes” alerts Transilien communications.