Sister of man killed by train in Ashland calls for more safety measures

ASHLAND — The sister of a man who was killed by a Commuter Rail train last week as he attempted to cross the tracks in downtown Ashland says more safety measures are needed.

Kinyana Watson, of Framingham, is the sister of Jason Haywood, 46, who died last Thursday when he was struck by a train at the downtown crossing in Ashland, said the MBTA must do more to prevent such incidents.

"There are signs there, but people are going to take the shortest and quickest way," she said. "I notice in Framingham, they put fences up so people can't cross the track.

"I believe they could put the fence there (in Ashland)."

Watson said if a fence had been installed, her brother may have taken a different route and would have not been struck by the train.

Haywood, who was in born in Boston but moved to Framingham in the early 1990s, was a Framingham High School graduate. He worked as a chef.

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Watson said her brother, who was married and had four children, was enthusiastic about fashion.

"He was funny, very funny," she said. "He was very flashy. He loved wearing very colorful clothes — red, green, yellow. Everything had to match — his pants, his shirt, his hat, his shoes."

On the night of the incident, Haywood had made a trip to the grocery store. He normally rode a scooter, but something was wrong with it so he chose to walk.

In a statement, the MBTA said safety is a "top priority."

"With safety as the top priority, the MBTA, Keolis and MBTA Transit Police remain committed to actively raising awareness of the severe dangers of trespassing along active track areas and grade crossings through a long-standing partnership with Operation Lifesaver, a public safety nonprofit dedicated to rail safety education," MBTA officials said in the statement. "Oftentimes, individuals traversing on or near Commuter Rail tracks are unable to hear a train approaching until it is too late due to a train’s high speed. Even when a Commuter Rail train is not scheduled, freight trains and other services operate on the Commuter Rail network around the Greater Boston area. Through its partnership with Operation Lifesaver, the MBTA continues to engage the public through educational initiatives about these life-threatening risks in order to prevent potential tragedies."

Operation Lifesaver Inc. is a nonprofit organization that is a nationally-recognized leader in rail safety education. On its website, it reports that a person or vehicle is struck by a train every three hours in the U.S.

Watson said she reached out to the MBTA but has not heard back. She said she wants to work with the agency to determine how to prevent what happened to her brother from happening again.

"Something needs to be done to make it safer," she said.

The incident remains under investigation by the MBTA Transit Police, the Massachusetts State Police and the Middlesex District Attorney's Office.

Norman Miller can be reached at 508-626-3823 or nmiller@wickedlocal.com. For up-to-date public safety news, follow him on Twitter @Norman_MillerMW or on Facebook at facebook.com/NormanMillerCrime.

This article originally appeared on MetroWest Daily News: Sister of Ashland man killed by train calls for more safety measures