Rebuilding Place in the Urban Space

"A community’s physical form, rather than its land uses, is its most intrinsic and enduring characteristic." [Katz, EPA] This blog focuses on place and placemaking and all that makes it work--historic preservation, urban design, transportation, asset-based community development, arts & cultural development, commercial district revitalization, tourism & destination development, and quality of life advocacy--along with doses of civic engagement and good governance watchdogging.

Sunday, July 12, 2009

Oddly enough, two recent track deaths on the Baltimore light rail line haven't been reported in Washington media

See these articles from the Baltimore Sun:

- MTA hands over accident probe to Baltimore County police
- Sun editorial: A light rail accident in Lutherville takes two teenagers' lives, raising questions about unusual circumstances and employee (in)actions
- Teens’ deaths on light rail accidental, MTA says
- Teens fatally injured on tracks were apparently lying on rails
- 2nd teenager dies; boys found on light rail tracks
- MTA Confirm Timeline Of Light Rail Accident (This story from WJZ-TV includes links to a number of video stories)

From the second item:

That the accident was a tragedy is beyond question. The Lutherville teens probably should have known better than to be walking on the light rail lines, but their poor judgment was compounded by some unusual circumstances and what may have been a fatal assumption.

The victims probably did not know that both northbound and southbound trains were sharing the southbound tracks because of an accident less than one hour earlier not far away. Someone had placed a 10-foot-long section of highway guard rail on the northbound tracks. A northbound train struck it. The guard rail was lodged underneath its metal wheels, and the train was taken out of service at the Lutherville station.

But that hardly provides a full explanation of the event. Perhaps the most serious question is this: Why didn't the light rail operator see the pair walking along the tracks and slam on the brakes? Operators normally have a full view of the tracks ahead from the front of the lead car, like a bus driver looking out on the road.

Labels:

0 Comments:

Post a Comment

<< Home