In case you needed an additional reminder why it's bad business to run from the law, we present this video of a car smashing through a railroad crossing just ahead of a train. As it turns out, the train wasn't the primary danger here. Much to our surprise (and likely to the surprise of the driver), the floppy crossing gate was the source of this near-death experience.

We don't have much background on this clip, but honestly, is it really necessary? We do know this comes from Poland, and it happened back in January though the video was only recently posted to the PKP Polskie Linie Kolejowe SA YouTube channel. The video description tells us this much, but curiously, the purpose of sharing the clip was not to deter would-be vigilantes from fleeing the bobbies. Instead, the description extols the virtues of not ignoring the lights (or the gates) at railroad crossings, lest you be punted down the track by a fast-moving train. Or in this case, killed by taking a red and white pole to the face.

The video description doesn't completely ignore the fact that this driver was nearly impaled by a crossing bar. Apparently, not all crossing bars are fragile and ready to explode on impact, as this one had the structural fortitude to punch through a thick glass windscreen. That said, the video description tells drivers to never manoeuvre around barriers when they're down, but ironically, it does instruct drivers to ram them should they be stuck on the track between them. The barriers are designed to break, though we don't think they're supposed to pierce the windscreen of a Mazda estate jumping the track at high speed.

Speaking of the estate, what ultimately happened to this daredevil? The video suggests the risky move worked, as pursuing officers are forced to stop for the train, which then stops on the track to block the crossing completely. Unfortunately, criminals often fail to realise the world is now filled with cameras that catch things like number plates and faces of drivers. According to Car Throttle, this would-be stunt driver was eventually arrested and charged with all kinds of things and yes, property damage was among them.