This morning as I headed for my car, I thought to myself, “I’ll be in the train within a half hour and then in the city soon after.” Well, it didn’t happen in quite that timely of a manner. I stood on the platform for an hour waiting as a voice on the loud speaker intoned, “All trains are stopped, there was a fatality at the Hamilton station.” A train eventually arrived and far too many people piled in. The train inched by slowly. I heard a businessman talking on the phone say, “We’re finally moving but a squirrel just passed us.”

This is the second suicide in two weeks. Perhaps it is a weekly occurence? I hate to even think of it.

Pedestrian killed by train in Hamilton
A pedestrian on the tracks was hit by a train and killed in an apparent suicide near the Hamilton train station during rush hour this morning, officials said.

The incident took place about 6:30 a.m. when Train 3916 hit the person under the Whitehead Road overpass near the Hamilton Station on its run from Trenton to New York City, said NJ Transit spokesman Dan Stessel.

The name of the person killed on the tracks was not immediately available and police are investigating. Initial reports indicated the victim apparently committed suicide.

The incident meant delays and overcrowded trains on NJ Transit’s busiest rail line.

About 50,000 NJ Transit passengers ride the Northeast Corridor on a typical weekday, Stessel said.

Service was suspended for about an hour while police investigated.

By 7:30 a.m., officials reopened three of the four tracks in that area and trains started running from Trenton.

There was limited service from Hamilton and Princeton Junction, with cars overcrowded and running 30 to 60 minutes behind schedule, Stessel said.