It also improved the structure so that the van can get top marks in the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety's new frontal crash test, which hits a fixed barrier at an angle.
Network Rail said there had been a problem at the crossing a year ago, with the barrier rising and falling slowly, but it had been fixed and it was in full working order before the crash.
"This crash began back when refining problems around the country were being fixed, one after the other, at the same time that our seasonal gasoline demand was shrinking, " she said.