A pedestrian attempting to catch a morning train to Washington was fatally struck by it this morning in Gaithersburg, police reported.

An 81-year-old man was trying to cross the train tracks shortly before 8 a.m. at the South Summit Ave. train crossing to catch MARC train 878 when the train clipped him, said Angela Cruz, a spokeswoman for Montgomery County police.

The Associated Press reported trains were delayed 2 1/2 hours. Passengers were bused to Shady Grove and their MARC tickets were honored, said Dave Clark, a spokesman for the Maryland Transit Administration.

A portion of South Summit Avenue near the station that was blocked has reopened to traffic.

The victim's name has not been released.

jtorbati@baltsun.com