Video: Riga police car crosses closed railway crossing just three seconds before train
On Wednesday, September 23, a dashcam in Riga's Krustpils Street captured a State Police car with lights flashing crossing a closed railway crossing only three seconds before a train arrived. Police say the crew was responding to a report of a possibly intoxicated driver.
On Wednesday, September 23, at around 4:15 p.m., a bystander's dashcam captured an incident at a railway crossing on Krustpils Street in Riga. At the moment a State Police vehicle, with its emergency lights on, crossed the tracks, the crossing barrier was already down because a train was approaching — leaving only about three seconds between the police car and the oncoming train.
Police explanation
The State Police said the crew was responding to a call about a driver suspected of being under the influence of alcohol. Before crossing the tracks, the driver of the emergency vehicle checked that it was safe to proceed and judged that the train was still far enough away to allow the crossing to be cleared in time.
When this is permitted
Under Latvia's traffic regulations, an emergency vehicle may, in certain circumstances, cross a railway crossing even against a red signal, provided it is carrying out an urgent duty task and has its blue emergency lights and special sound signal activated. Section 29 of the traffic rules allows emergency vehicles to use such privileges when responding to an incident, saving a person's life, or preventing a threat to public safety.
