A BUS driver with 12 passengers on board has been caught allegedly running a red light at a Babinda level crossing as a train approached.

The incident at a crossing at the intersection of the Bruce Highway and Howard Kennedy Drive happened about 5pm Friday – a day after the collision between the Sunlander and a garbage truck at Mundoo, near Innisfail, which killed truckie Terry Brown.

The northbound train was hauling 13 Sunlander carriages to Cairns from the scene of Thursday’s fatal crash when the train driver was forced to use his horn to warn the bus driver at the crossing.

At the time, the rail line was closed to other trains.

The tour bus allegedly entered the level crossing while the lights and warning signals were operating.

A 28-year-old Cairns man was issued with a traffic notice for the offence, which attracts a $300 fine and three demerit points.

Cr Paul Gregory, whose division takes in Babinda, said it was beyond belief the incident had occurred especially in light of the recent tragedy at the Mundoo crossing which had no lights.

Police yesterday declined to reveal the name of the driver or the company involved.

Queensland Rail said the Cairns to Brisbane line was reopened yesterday after the black box was removed from the wrecked train on Friday in the presence of police, investigators and QR staff.

The data will be downloaded to determine the speed of the train before the collision and when the emergency brakes were applied.

The other four carriages of the Sunlander train were hauled to Cairns on Saturday. The train’s two locomotives and baggage car have been cleared from the tracks but remain at the site.

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