A train driver had "no chance'' of avoiding a collision with a 15-year-old boy who was struck and killed at Matamata today, police say.
An investigation was launched after the Matamata College student was hit by a south-bound train about 3pm.
Sergeant Graham McGurk of Matamata police said the victim and two friends had been next to tree-lined railway tracks near the school when tragedy struck.
"It appears the victim came out of the trees and into the path of the southbound locomotive without warning, leaving the train driver with no chance of avoiding hitting the boy.''
The boy was struck between two level crossings, where trees lined both sides of the tracks.