A year after teen's death, many say Barrington, Illinois hasn't kept promises on making rail crossing safer
BARRINGTON, Ill. (CBS) -- This past Saturday marked a year to the day since a northwest suburban teen was hit and killed by a Metra train while on her way to school.
All this time later, many voices in Barrington say safety promises at the train crossing have not been kept.
On Thursday, Jan. 25, 2024, Marin Lacson, 17, was on her way to Barrington High School when she was struck by a Union Pacific Northwest Metra train.
On Monday, dozens of Barrington High School students and community members gathered next to the downtown Metra train crossing to remember Marin.
"She was just like you — enjoying your youth, enjoying your community, enjoying your teammates and your classmates," a woman said at the vigil, "and she doesn't deserve not to be here today."
Katy Morris was Marin's best friend, and Marin's death still weighs on her.
"It's hard to be able, like, every single day, you pass where your friend died, and just know that," Morris said.
But Morris also remains bothered by the fact that someone else could die on the same tracks.
"It's just kind of upsetting that there hasn't been any change yet," she said.
Safety advocates say a pedestrian gate at the crossing could have saved Marin's life. They have had conversations with village officials, but nothing has been done.
So they once again went in front of village officials on Monday. At the Barrington Village Board meeting Monday night, students made clear to officials their pain and demands to get a pedestrian gate installed.
"Cut through the governmental bureaucracy," a student said at the village meeting. "I understand it's difficult, but pick up your damn feet."
"We should not have to lose another kid's life in order for safety, or someone to be at the crossroads where something could actually happen," another student said.
When CBS News Chicago reached out to the Village of Barrington, officials there said the village is working with the Illinois Department of Transportation and the Illinois Commerce Commission to get the gates put up at the Metra crossing:
The Village is actively working on a number of rail safety projects.
"Last Friday, after 15 years of work, a preconstruction meeting was held for the Route 14 Grade Separation project. As part of this project, the roadway and pedestrian routes will be fully separated from the railroad tracks. A new multi-use path for pedestrians and bicyclists will be installed to further safety and connectivity in the Village.
"On tonight's agenda, the Board will be considering approval of a Phase I study to evaluate a pedestrian grade separation at the Canadian National Railway (CN) crossing on Main Street just east of the high school. Efforts for this project began four years ago, and this work will review all options to separate pedestrians from the railroad tracks. In the meantime, CN will be installing pedestrian gates at this location. While this work has been planned for a while, it was just recently scheduled, and the Village was able to coordinate with the project team so that the majority of work will take place over spring break to minimize disruption to students, buses, and pedestrian and vehicular traffic.
"As to pedestrian gates, the railroad owns the property where the gates will be installed and is responsible for installation. The ICC has jurisdiction to administer and enforce safety requirements for track, facilities, and equipment belonging to all railroads in Illinois and must approve the installation of pedestrian gates. The Village has been participating in the design and petition process with IDOT to help achieve ICC authorization for pedestrian gates at Union Pacific crossings, including Hough Street, Main Street and Hillside Avenue.
"To keep the community informed, we have created a dedicated pedestrian gate page on our website for project updates and will share new information as it becomes available through this page and other Village communication channels.
"While we, too, wish this process was easier and faster, the legal proceedings to secure pedestrian gate authorization will take time. We understand and often share the public's frustration but remain committed to doing everything in our control to keep this project moving forward as quickly as possible and will keep the public informed throughout the process."
"We thank the community for sharing its feedback and support as we continue our efforts to enhance public safety in Barrington."
Meanwhile, the community created a foundation and scholarship, both in Marin's name.
"We have a scholarship going for people who exemplify her character, stories going up," Morris said. "We're keeping her memory alive and the fight alive."
