ROHNERT PARK — There's a new push to make pedestrians and bicycle crossings near the North Bay's SMART commuter line safer after two recent deaths near the tracks in Rohnert Park.
Sonoma County Sheriff's officials identified 66 year old Gary Raymond Danning of Petaluma as the man who was fatally struck Friday by a southbound train.
Danning, who'd been riding his bike on the sidewalk of Golf Course Drive heading toward Commerce Boulevard, was hit when he attempted to cross the tracks at Country Club Drive.
A spokesman for the Rohnert Park Department of Public Safety said Danning was apparently wearing headphones when he was struck.
A woman from La Grange was killed in that same spot the day before Danning's death. Authorities said she had ducked under a vehicle crossing arm and was unable to dodge a train as she ran across the tracks.
These crossing are dangerous, with trains coming through often at or near their top speed.
SMART General Manager Farhard Mansourian said there are warnings at these intersection aimed at pedestrians and cyclists.
"You have red lights flashing, you have bells ringing, you have gates that are down, and people choose to go under them, or go around them, or have headphones on and don't pay attention to any of these," said Mansourian.
But the crossing arms at these intersections are there to keep vehicles off the tracks as trains approach, and there are no physical barriers specifically designed to stop pedestrians and cyclists. One answer, according to Mansourian, could involve installing some kind of gate to keep people out of the danger zone.
"We're trying to figure out what else we can do," he said. "We need to stop you physically before you get to that area."
Mansourian would also like North Bay cities to recondier policies that forbid train engineers from issuing loud warnings or blasting horns at crossings.
Any new safety features added to the system could cost hundreds of thousands, or even millions of dollars. But that's not Mansourian's main consideration.
"You know, I think public safety is all of our number one job," he said.