With trains coming and going, 13 drivers crossed the tracks and will pay fines

With trains coming and going, 13 drivers swerved around railroad crossing arms and were cited by police in a special enforcement on Wednesday morning.

The drivers were issued citations by Wichita police between 7 a.m. and 11 a.m., Officer Charley Davidson said.

"If those railroad arms are down, (don't) go around the railroad arms as it can be very dangerous as obviously the railroad arms being down is indicative of a train coming down the railroad tracks," Davidson said. "We're asking everyone to make sure they obey the city ordinance."

All 13 violators drove around the railroad crossing arms, he said. Davidson did not say if trains were approaching or if they had passed as the violators drove around the signals.

Wichita's fine schedule dated July of 2016 lists a $101.50 fine for railroad crossing violations.

The areas monitored included the 3300 block of North Hillside, the 3900 block of North Oliver, 37th and Ridgewood and the 4000 block of North Woodlawn, Davidson said. The enforcement was a partnership among Union Pacific Railroad, Bel Aire police and Wichita police's traffic unit and Patrol North.

Davidson said officers were staged in the areas and stopped vehicles after committing infractions. All of the signals were functioning properly, he said.

This story was originally published March 8, 2018 at 6:24 PM with the headline "With trains coming and going, 13 drivers crossed the tracks and will pay fines."