A 1999 truck-train crash that exposed loopholes in the commercial driver's license program in Illinois was caused by faulty crossing signals, not by a truck driver who drove around the gates.

The Amtrak train crashed into a tractor-trailer loaded with steel in March 1999 at a crossing in Bourbonnais, Ill., killing 11 people and injuring more than 100. Truck driver John Stokes was found to have falsified logs and to be driving on a provisional license, even though previous infractions should have meant the revocation of his license under federal CDL regulations.
According to published reports, a police report released Friday said Stokes was "physically impaired by extreme sleep deprivation or fatigue," but did not try to go around the lowered gates, as many had thought.
The report said Stokes did drive past the flashing red lights, but the crossing gate was not down. The gate didn't descend until his truck was already on the tracks, hitting the side of his trailer.
The news comes as the National Transportation Safety Board prepares to release its investigation findings and recommendations in Washington, D.C., today.