Originally published Tuesday, June 30, 2009 at 12:00 AM
Comments (119)
E-mail article
Print view
Share
Sound Transit train and car collide in Seattle
A man was injured late this afternoon when a Sound Transit light-rail train and a car collided at Martin Luther King Jr. Way South and South Myrtle Street.
Seattle Times staff reporters
A motorist received minor injuries Monday in a collision with a Sound Transit light-rail train in Rainier Valley, the third incident since frequent train testing began there this spring.
The crash happened just after 5 p.m. at Martin Luther King Jr. Way South and South Myrtle Street, next to the Othello light-rail station in Southeast Seattle.
Sound Transit spokesman Bruce Gray said the car was heading south and made a left turn, against a red light, from MLK Way onto Myrtle as the train traveled south alongside in the median of MLK.
The driver, a man in his 70s, was taken away by ambulance with minor injuries, said Seattle Fire Department spokeswoman Helen Fitzpatrick.
Emergency crews tore the roof off the car to remove the driver, said Fitzpatrick. He was the sole occupant, transit officials said.
At the time of the crash, the train was traveling at low speed because it was about to stop at the station, Gray said. The train T-boned the car.
The crash caused minor damage to a front panel on the train. It drove under its own power to the maintenance facility.
Sound Transit is testing its trains along the 14-mile route from downtown Seattle to Tukwila, in preparation for service to begin July 18.
After the wreck was cleared at 6:30 p.m. train tests resumed.
This is the third incident involving a test train in Rainier Valley, where tracks run in a median at street level. Two were crashes with cars, and in one case, a person walked into the side of a train, according to Sound Transit.
"We've been running 20 hours a day for over a month here. We think people are getting used to it, but incidents like this are a reminder for people to follow the rules," Gray said.
Sound Transit officials say their rail project has improved overall safety on MLK Way, by eliminating two-way left-turn lanes that used to play a major role in both motorist and pedestrian injuries.
![]()
Dana Echols, who said she witnessed the crash, and another bystander, Than Pham, said the rail intersections should have crossing gates.
Sound Transit didn't install crossing arms because trains are going at the normal traffic speed of 35 mph or less, Gray said, and because neighbors in public-comment sessions didn't want the area looking like a freight-train corridor.
A decade ago, an environmental-impact statement predicted 29 car-train collisions per year, and three with pedestrians, based on experience in other cities. Transit officials said actual numbers would be less in Seattle, because of improved warning signals and road designs, as well as relatively careful drivers here.
Critics of the project urged local politicians not to mix light rail with street traffic, before groundbreaking in 2003. Many U.S. cities, including Portland, run trains along arterial streets.
Sound Transit has visited many schools and groups to preach rail safety, while giving out water bottles, rulers and a board game with safety slogans. The agency and teenagers have made online videos, urging young people to keep off the tracks.
Jaywalking is still commonplace across MLK, while some motorists are noticeably enraged by longer wait times at traffic lights, where trains take priority.
"I just think that a lot of kids, Lord forbid, will be running across the train tracks thinking they can make it, and they're going to get hit," said Echols. "The train's not even open yet, and people are already getting in accidents."
Mike Lindblom: 206-515-5631 or mlindblom@seattletimes.com
Copyright © 2009 The Seattle Times Company
Italian lead prosecutor argues Knox motive was hatred
UW provost tapped for Nike's board
Food-bank donations pour in after theft in Rainier Valley
Lynnwood is reinventing itself — again
Man gets 11 1/2 years in I-90 floating-bridge stabbing

LA Galaxy's David Beckham
Los Angeles Galaxy's David Beckham talks about the upcoming MLS Cup final during after a team practice.
nwjobs

Post a comment

Michelle Goodman blogs about work/life balance.
How to tell your office you're gravely ill
Post a comment
nwautos

Choosing a new sedan? Weigh the impact of your choice on your wallet and on the planet.
Post a comment
- Monfort fired after excellent worker turned unreliable
- Sentence request for US woman in Italy murder case
- 31 years for man who killed girlfriend, then lit cigarette and waited for police
- Boeing facility death was suicide
- Swedish threatens to end Regence BlueShield's contract
- Man falls 8 stories, suffers minor injuries
- Mariners Blog | A Mariners-Tigers swap makes a whole lot of sense for both teams
- Man shot in chest on E. Union Street in Capitol Hill
- Italian lead prosecutor argues Knox motive was hatred
- Mariners Blog | Dustin Ackley to move to second base; Mariners add six to 40-man roster
- Swedish threatens to end Regence BlueShield's contract
170 - Senate Democrats want to tax nips and tucks
131 - Italian prosecutors wrap up in Knox murder trial
109 - Boeing breaks ground for historic SC plant
85 - A Mariners-Tigers swap makes a whole lot of sense for both teams
84 - Man sentenced to 31 years in prison in girlfriend's slaying on I-5
78 - Mariners add six to 40-man roster
68 - First key vote today on Senate health bill
63 - Man shot in Capitol Hill
51 - Lynnwood is reinventing itself — again
50
- Swedish threatens to end Regence BlueShield's contract
- Washington state wines make annual best-of list
- Recipes: Sesame Pork Roast, Sour Cream Mashed Potatoes, Gingerbread with Lemon Sauce and more
- It's possible to recover a life lost to hoarding
- Restaurant review | Artisanal at The Bravern shows French flair in delicious style
- Seattle industrial artist Rusty Oliver is the man behind 'Smash Putt'
- Peruvian police: Gang killed people for their fat
- Nonprofits get creative using Twitter and Facebook to make donation easier
- $335 million in education grants
- Monfort fired after excellent worker turned unreliable









