Seattle streetcar knocked off tracks after collision with car

gdanjou said on January 17, 2012 at 1:37 AM

hi, just across the line we have what is called ,'sky train].which runs above the traffic,we haven't had any accidents so far ,and its been running since 1985/1986 build ed to get visitors around who were here for expo 86,no accidents only the ones who seem to be falling off the station platform from time to time,either on purpose or accidentally,I would have loved to travel on your other system 'sounder' I think its called..but found the price of a one way ticket to darn pricy, as for the monorail ,been on it in 62,,the old street cars ,down by the market wern't running when I was there last,can some one tell me if there running again ,and if not when?,thank you love your city , new westminster bc

ahblid said on January 16, 2012 at 11:24 AM

n15wb, - While I wouldn't argue that a monorail could have been far better, the 19th Century trains are exactly where they belong running in the streets with their 19th Century counterparts, the car. Both were invented in the same Century. Of course the train has evolved far more than our cars, with more computerization and modernization than our cars. And the train didn't hit anyone. It didn't leave the tracks and chase down that car. The driver of that car broke the law and ran a red light, along with breaking a few other laws, so as to ensure that she could hit the train. It's been the law of the land since before any of us were born that people & cars must yield to trains.

butch70 said on January 16, 2012 at 11:02 AM

Accidents do happen when people run the red light and get hurt.

myopinion said on January 16, 2012 at 8:16 AM

nickc -You really need to try spell check. It is a pretty cool tool. Both of your posts are very hard to read.

myopinion said on January 16, 2012 at 8:12 AM

invalid- A FEW "Seattle drivers are idiots" not all. There are good and bad drivers in all cities

invalid said on January 16, 2012 at 3:53 AM

Seattle drivers are idiots. They seem to feel it's their duty to make a light no matter what it takes. That seems to include Metro bus drivers and drivers of large commercial vehicles, who all really should know better as so-called "professional" drivers. And then there are the ones who just can't seem to pay attention to what they're doing to (literally) save their lives.

Jake-518 said on January 16, 2012 at 2:34 AM

The driver of the car should have known better. Anyways... I still want to ride the S.L.U.T. =P

River9 said on January 15, 2012 at 10:54 PM

@nickc..... seriously? wow, you have some issues. I hope I'm never on the same roads you are driving on. You are one angry person. And I'm starting to doubt your ability to read based on your posts.

jackwong said on January 15, 2012 at 10:51 PM

Seattle needs to provide much more signs to keep the people alert of the street cars. There's much room for improvement for public transportation. We need to keep investing.

Mingledchime said on January 15, 2012 at 9:59 PM

@ nickc - see my earlier comment as well; I don't think donjuan is listening...

n15wb said on January 15, 2012 at 9:57 PM

The voters approved a new monorail how many times? But instead, the incredibly intelligent city council and Mayor wanted their 18th/19th century choo choo trains to run right down the streets crowded with pedestrians and traffic ala 21st Century. Who woulda' thought the choo choo train would hit people/cars and vice versa??

c8lsonics said on January 15, 2012 at 9:15 PM

More importantly, when did they rename the S.L.U.T to the S.L.U.S?

nickc said on January 15, 2012 at 9:14 PM

@jonjuan if you read the atrical, you will se that the car hit the train the train didn't hit the car, and train has the right of way not the car. Also she ran a read light, so I ask you would you like to revise you coment, or you just being a big dummy???

VicMackey said on January 15, 2012 at 6:06 PM

Be forewarned, running red lights in Seattle can cause you to tap a S.L.U.T.

southlakeunion said on January 15, 2012 at 5:21 PM

Was waiting for this to happen!! This intersection is a mess.

saintquickey said on January 15, 2012 at 5:03 PM

They may not expect to see a train, but if they are not texting they will probably see see a traffic light and a street car. It was lucky that it was a street car and not a family of pedestrians.

ricberrong said on January 15, 2012 at 4:58 PM

What i have noticed about moving to Seattle 3 months ago is that drivers are far too distracted. So many of them race through yellow lights, even zipping through red lights. i step off the curb with extreme caution.

Mingledchime said on January 15, 2012 at 4:44 PM

@ jonjuan - Please read the skimpy story. Your take on who hit who may be in error. Your closing thought doesn't posess much logic as a bus may have about the same mass as the tram.

ahblid said on January 15, 2012 at 4:37 PM

@tootoo, On average light rail & streetcars cost $3.30 per passenger per ride to operate in this country. That bus that you suggest costs less; actually costs $3.60 per passenger per ride to operate. In Seattle, because of the rather short line for the Streetcar and the fact that it is still on the newer side, it's actually tied with the bus, both costing $4,38 per ride. Which suggests that King County Metro isn't exactly doing a bang up job when it comes to controlling the costs of the buses. On the other hand, with ridership still going up on the Streetcar, it would not surprise me at all to see that the Streetcar's cost per ride are actually lower in 2011. All the above data is from the National Transit Database for 2010.

wellcraft19 said on January 15, 2012 at 4:02 PM

We need more of these "streetcars" and less of unable drivers. This driver could just as well hit a minivan and killed a family. This time instead seems like no one "innocent" got hurt. Take her license away, and teach people to pay attention when driving. The tracks are there, no surprise they sometimes carry a streetcar.

jonjuan said on January 15, 2012 at 3:35 PM

What a great idea. Has this thing gone a month without hitting a car? Maybe when the kill a family they'll go back to buses.

tootoo said on January 15, 2012 at 2:40 PM

@Sir_Real Impractical, yes, since they can easily be replaced with bus routes, that go just as fast and cost much less. But dangerous?

myopinion said on January 15, 2012 at 2:07 PM

nickc--2 things. Anger and spelling issues?

Sir_Real said on January 15, 2012 at 1:59 PM

Unlike the successful light rail, these streetcars have shown to be both dangerous and impractical. This should be a sign of the retirement of the streetcar program.

nickc said on January 15, 2012 at 1:45 PM

Time to take away the drivers license??? Let me gess she thinks that she has the right to run the light and she can beet the train!!!!! Any one who trys to beat a train is an idiot! The train will alweas win and has the right of way on the traks. Give her a big fat fine and take here lisance away. Driviing is a priviliage not a right people! if your going to be an idiot driving on the road don't drive and if you don't expect that your license won't get taken away. I also hope the here inscrince company refuses to pay for the damages to her car and the train and she has to come up with the money out of here own packet!

intrepid1 said on January 15, 2012 at 1:40 PM

Inevitable that something like this would happen.

Daytrader said on January 15, 2012 at 1:20 PM

I wonder what part of big and white streetcar the driver didn't understand.

tonysbone said on January 15, 2012 at 1:09 PM

The title is incorrect, it should read "Car knocks streetcar off tracks" The trolly didn't hit the car, the car hit the trolly