Empire Commuter: Just when it seemed safe to get back on the train

As I was getting off the 7:10 train in Albany last night I was talking to another regular commuter about how the delays of the last week seemed to be over. Little did I know that my train was the first one that was on-time that evening. The Kingston Freeman reports:

Train kills 44-year-old man on tracks in Staatsburg

STAATSBURG  An Amtrak passenger train struck and killed a 44-year-old man on the tracks in Staatsburg on Tuesday, police said.

The Dutchess County Sheriff's Office said the man walked onto the tracks at 4:25 p.m -- about a quarter-mile north of Lee Street in Staatsburg -- stopped and was struck by a northbound train carrying roughly 140 passengers.

The victim's name was not released. Amtrak spokesman Cliff Cole, in New York City, referred to the man as a "trespasser" on the tracks, according to The Associated Press.

The train, comprising an engine and four cars, was northbound from New York City to Albany, police said.

No one on the train was injured, but the tracks had to be shut down for about 2-1/2 hours while the incident was investigated, and several trains were delayed as a result. The tracks reopened about 7 p.m. Tuesday.

Police did not know why the man walked onto the tracks and said their investigation was continuing.

Staatsburg is a hamlet in the Dutchess County town of Hyde Park, near the Rhinebeck line.

Inadequate fencing around tracks has been the cause of many Amtrak fatalities.