Train fatalities up this year, with another today

Rail service was briefly suspended this morning when a 37-year-old pedestrian got hit by a train on the West Trenton line in Somerton.

Witnesses told police the man jumped in front of the train as it approached the Forest Hills station at about 11:20 a.m., said Officer Tanya Little, a police spokeswoman. Medics declared him dead at the scene at 11:45 p.m. Service was interrupted for about 25 minutes, SEPTA spokesman Andrew Busch said.

The death is the 14th so far this year in SEPTA's five-county service area, marking a slight increase in rail fatalities regionally, Busch said. Twelve people died after getting hit by trains in 2012, while 13 died in 2011, Busch added. About half have been ruled or are presumed to be suicides, he said.