When you're engineering a freight train at a quick clip through town, the last thing you want to see is a pedestrian darting in front of you or a jogger trotting alongside the tracks.

"We've had four or five incidents in the past six months with pedestrians struck by a train," said Elk Grove Police Sgt. Mike Iannone. Most of the injuries were minor with people just brushed by the train, but at least teenage girl suffered severe injuries, said Iannone. Another man, apparently intoxicated, had his leg severed when he was lying on the tracks near Elk Grove Boulevard.

Worried about those recent injuries and close calls, Elk Grove police are cracking down on pedestrians illegally crossing Union Pacific Railroad lines with a planned "safety sweep" Wednesday afternoon. The idea is to ticket pedestrians found illegally crossing or using the railroad right-of-way.

In the first 90 minutes of enforcement, officers issued five citations and three warnings.