A southbound SMART train struck a bicyclist at the Sebastopol Road crossing in Santa Rosa on Saturday, Sept. 19.
It was the seventh collision on the regional rail line in 2026 and the third this month.
The crash happened at about 6:45 p.m. as the train traveled between the Santa Rosa Downtown and Rohnert Park stations, SMART spokesperson Julia Gonzalez told the Marin Independent Journal. Santa Rosa Police Lt. Matt North said the bicyclist was taken to Providence Santa Rosa Memorial Hospital. The bicyclist's condition was not available as of Sunday, Sept. 20.
The Sonoma-Marin Area Rail Transit system, known as SMART, runs through San Rafael's downtown station and connects Marin and Sonoma counties. The rising collision count is a safety concern for riders across the corridor.
90 passengers and two crew members were aboard the train. None reported injuries. The collision's cause is under investigation.
Seven crashes in nine months marks a sharp increase. SMART recorded just two collisions in all of 2025, according to the Press Democrat. The spike comes as ridership climbs: SMART carried more than 1.1 million passenger trips in fiscal year 2025, an all-time record, and projected 1.4 million riders for fiscal year 2026 after a 19% service increase.
Officials have said the majority of this year's crashes involved people experiencing mental health crises. As of Sept. 17, four of the six collisions at that point were classified as mental health-related, Gonzalez told the Press Democrat. Both 2025 incidents were also linked to mental health crises.
The pattern has played out across the corridor. On Sept. 11, a SMART train struck a pedestrian near the roundabout on Windsor River Road in Windsor. The pedestrian was hospitalized in critical condition. On Sept. 10, a northbound train hit an unoccupied Subaru Outback at the Fulton Road crossing northwest of Santa Rosa. On Aug. 14, a 66-year-old Santa Rosa man suffered significant injuries after being struck by a train while experiencing a mental health episode, according to police. On July 14, a woman was found with life-threatening injuries after a train struck her near Piner Road in Santa Rosa.
Gonzalez told the Press Democrat on Sept. 17 that reaching out to someone in crisis, listening, and connecting them with support "can make a difference."
SMART launched a coalition with more than 45 organizations in Marin and Sonoma counties focused on suicide prevention and mental health outreach in 2019. No public statement from SMART's general manager or board chair addressing the 2026 collision pattern was found in available records as of Sept. 20.
No upcoming SMART board meeting date has been posted. Residents can contact the board at [email protected] or visit sonomamarintrain.org for updates.
If you are having suicidal thoughts, call or text 988 to reach the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline. Sonoma County's mobile crisis services can be reached at 800-746-8181, and the behavioral health access line at 707-565-6900.
