On the afternoon of Saturday June 13, 2026 a child was fatally struck by a Canadian National freight train off of  Park Street between Chicago Avenue and Morris Avenue in Mundelein, Illinois. 

The Park Street railroad crossing this happened at has been a pain point for residents over the last years due to lack of pedestrian safety measures, with concerns worsening due to compounding overdevelopment in the downtown Mundelein area and subsequent increased population and foot traffic.

"Mundelein Police Department Commander Rick Wilfenger said the railroad crossing signals were all working properly in the area of the collision", according to Lake & McHenry Scanner.

There are no pedestrian signals or pedestrian safety measures at this crossing, only vehicle signals.

While there are pedestrian safety measures at the Hawley crossings one block south and 176 crossings/Maple crossings one block north, why aren't there on Park Street crossings?

Photo 1: Hawley crossings with pedestrian crossing arm (screenshot from Alexr1012 on Youtube)

Photo 2: 176 crossings/Maple crossings with pedestrian crossing arm (screenshot from Adam's Train Channel on Youtube)

Photo 3: Park crossings with no pedestrian specific safety measures (screenshot from MetraMP36Films on Youtube)

I originally made a change.org petition about this stretch of downtown Mundelein in February 2024. I deleted it as it received no attention, but only after reaching out to Village of Mundelein, IDOT, Illinois Commerce Commission and Canadian National Railway officials.

The original petition description, which was included in communications to Village of Mundelein, IDOT, Illinois Commerce Commission and Canadian National Railway officials, stated the following:

"Please help promptly implement standard safety measures at Park Street [sic] railroad crossing in downtown Mundelein between Chicago and Morris Avenues. This is an extremely unsafe pedestrian crossing. The downtown Mundelein area is growing exponentially with the many new residential rental developments. Most recently Morris Station has been completed and residents are moving in, causing a flux in pedestrian traffic and increased foot traffic to the already pedestrian heavy downtown area. There are sidewalks that cross this crossing and stop at this crossing on both sides of the street. There are no active or passive pedestrian alert signals or safety measures in place at this crossing. The drop-down bars that prevent cars from crossing the tracks when trains approach have a heavy metal mechanism that drops in the pedestrian walkway at this crossing; this is very unsafe. There aren't even crossing pavement markings at this crossing. This crossing is part of the newly (and very necessary) instated quiet zone, so additional measures must be taken to ensure pedestrian safety when crossing these tracks. Every 3 hours in the United States a person or vehicle is hit by a train. More than 2,100 people are injured or killed annually in crossing and trespassing incidents in North America. The Chicago region is the busiest rail hub in the United States, the center of some 7,400 miles of track in Illinois. The state has 7,615 crossings, second only to Texas. In 2021, Illinois was the 4th highest state in railroad crossing collisions and fatalities; 125 collisions, 21 fatalities, and 32 injuries. Pedestrian railroad incidents are the leading cause of death on America’s railways. Hundreds of pedestrians are killed or seriously injured on railroads every year. Over the last ten years, pedestrian (trespasser) fatalities and injuries increased by almost twenty percent. Suburban sprawl and population growth is likely to lead to even more pedestrian incidents in the coming decade. Effective devices are a necessary complement to law enforcement initiatives and public outreach and education efforts in the enhancement of pedestrian safety at grade crossings. Please expedite the necessary pedestrian safety measures that are NEEDED at this crossing."

My message referenced  the same railroad crossing where the death on June 13, 2026 occurred.

Illinois officials responded saying the following, dated 2/27/2024:

"Thank you for contacting us regarding the railroad crossing at Park Street between Chicago and Morris Avenue in Mundelein. Park Street is under the jurisdiction of the Village of Mundelein, therefore the Village would be responsible for any improvements at this railroad crossing."

An official from the Village of Mundelein responded which included the following, dated 2/11/2024:

"The Village is working with Canadian National to reconfigure the crossing at this location. CN is currently working on the design for the realignment of the crossing to improve pedestrian and vehicular safety. Thank you for reaching out about this. Hopefully, we will have this addressed in the near future... We are at the mercy of Canadian National and they aren’t the most cooperative group. Unfortunately, we don’t have any schedule or timeline to point to from them. We are hoping for something by summer 2025."

 

Canadian National Railway did not respond.

This tragic death in Mundelein, just two years after the above communications, came one day prior to officials publicly identifying a mother who days prior lost her life after getting hit by a Canadian National Railway train in nearby Grayslake. 

Our villages, our government, and Canadian  National Railway officials need to prioritize the safety of residents and to avoid more loss near and at railroad crossings in our villages. It is imperative that the powers at be are proactive in public safety measures to avoid unfortunate incidents like this.

Both state and private entities need to put people over entities.  Safety needs to be a priority. People need to be the priority.

My statement from 2024 stands, we need  pedestrian alert signals and safety measures in place at this crossing. Please sign and or share this petition if you agree.