MARTIN COUNTY, FL — A 68-year-old bicyclist was killed instantly Monday morning after riding directly into the path of a Brightline train in Martin County — and a sheriff’s detective standing nearby witnessed the entire tragedy unfold.
The crash happened just after 11 a.m. at Southeast Monterey Road and Southeast Dixie Highway, near U.S. 1 in Stuart.
According to Martin County Sheriff John Budensiek, the crossing arms had come down properly and all warning signals were active. Despite this, the elderly man — a Stuart resident whose name has not been released — weaved through traffic, crossed a cement barrier with plastic dividers, and pushed his bicycle toward the tracks.
A detective already stationed at the crossing saw what was happening and desperately tried to intervene.
“Our detective saw what was unfolding in front of him, started hitting his air horn, tried to get our victim’s attention,” Sheriff Budensiek said.
It wasn’t enough.
The man, who had what appeared to be a bag of food hanging from his handlebars, looked briefly to the south — but never looked north. The Brightline train, traveling between 30 and 40 mph, struck him instantly.
The train stopped immediately. Investigators reviewed onboard video footage.
Authorities initially questioned whether the incident was intentional.
“It does not look like that,” Budensiek confirmed. “It looks like he simply rode into the railroad crossing area… didn’t look to the north and the train hit him.”
Southeast Monterey Road was closed for several hours following the crash.
