Train Collides With Vehicle in Fort Collins; Snarls Traffic

By now if you've lived in Fort Collins for any length of time, you've encountered the train drama that seems to unfold on a pretty regular basis. The track that runs through the center of town can create traffic nightmares, depending on the time of day it slowly passes through on its way to the north.

Related: How To Deal With The Annoying Trains in Fort Collins; Look at Routes

The worst part is there's no published schedule and no way to know if you're going to get stuck by a train until it's too late. Such was the case yesterday morning, Jan 20.

In this case though, the situation was even worse, because not only did a train pass through town at a key commute time for many people, but it actually struck an unoccupied vehicle just north of Cherry Street, on the north edge of town. As a result, the train was stopped for more than an hour, blocking key intersections around Old Town, preventing cars from traveling east to west and vice versa.

North College Ave. was closed in both directions until about 9:30 AM, in addition to Cherry St. and N. Mason Street. Even when the crash was cleared and the train started moving again, it took a long, long time for the congestion to clear the area.

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The issue with the trains in Fort Collins centers around the fact that three different train lines meet right around downtown, and trains passing through the area need to slowly maneuver through the crossings, creating traffic issues. The City of Fort Collins has a pretty comprehensive FAQ on dealing with the traffic issues and trains on their website.