How (not) to negotiate a train crossing

Trying to out run a train at a crossing has never been a good idea. Most times the train wins, especially when you are driving a rickety old minibus laden to capacity. But the van driver and passengers decided otherwise, even after certain eyewitnesses claimed that they had warned the driver against making the crossing. I suppose one would like to make damn sure there isn't an approaching train on track before you cross. But when you are in a hurry to visit a temple, basic road sense and etiquette can be dispensed with.

To say that it ended badly is an understatement. But some how I am not so sure. You see the benevolent state government has this habit of doling out solatiums for morons who can’t seem to understand that standing in the path of an oncoming train usually gets you killed. A sheer waste of life and tax payer resources. Why I ask must the rest of us spend our taxes for the stupidity and gross negligence of a few? I am sure that there are other equally creative ways of committing mass suicide that does not involve a drain on the state exchequer. Rewarding people for this type of behaviour will only ensure that it happens again.