Police say a man escaped injury after being run over by a freight train while sleeping in the middle of railroad tracks in the state of New York.

Troopers say 38-year-old Aaron Collins was highly intoxicated when he went to sleep Wednesday night on tracks in the town of Schaghticoke, 30 kilometres north of the state capital Albany.

Police say a freight train more than 1.6 kilometres long approached around 10:30 p.m. The conductor spotted Collins on the tracks and stopped the train, but not before the first two engines passed over him.

Troopers say the engines were separated and the first engine was moved forward to free Collins, who was uninjured but still drunk.

He was taken to a hospital for evaluation.