Blue Line Hits Car & Injures 4 in Downtown LA

4 Injured When Metro Blue Line Train, Car Collide

KCBS-TV
September 17, 2007

LOS ANGELES ― Four people suffered minor injuries Monday when a vehicle and a Metro Blue Line train collided near downtown Los Angeles, officials said.

Paramedics were sent to Flower Street and Washington Boulevard at 11:10 a.m., Diana Igawa of the Los Angeles Fire Department said.

No one on the train was injured, Igawa said.

The circumstances of the collision were under investigation.

Gold Line Going 15 mph Injures 7, Crushes F-150 Like a Potato Chip Bag & Traps Motorist

7 hurt when Gold Line train hits truck at Highland Park crossing

Los Angeles Times
By Andrew Blankstein and Tami Abdollah
September 12, 2007

A Gold Line light-rail train carrying dozens of people hit a pickup during rush hour Tuesday morning in Highland Park, injuring seven people, authorities said.

The crash occurred shortly before 8 a.m. at a crossing at Avenue 55 and Marmion Way.

The 35-year-old driver of the pickup truck was taken to Huntington Hospital in Pasadena with unspecified injuries, Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Lt. Suzan Young said.

The driver was awake and alert but was considered in critical condition because of the potential for internal injuries, a Fire Department official said.

The truck was severely damaged.

Six people on the train – including the operator and a Los Angeles County sheriff’s deputy providing security on the train – were being treated for minor neck and back injuries, Young said.

Metropolitan Transportation Authority officials said the southbound train was carrying as many as 60 people.

A witness told investigators the pickup driver tried to beat the train, which was passing through a crossing that has lights and bells but no gates, MTA spokesman Jose Ubaldo said.

“Either he disregarded the signals – and there are plenty going along that Gold Line, so he had to disregard it – or he wasn’t paying attention,” said d’Lisa Davies, spokeswoman for the Los Angeles City Fire Department.

She said she did not know whether all the signals were working Tuesday morning.

Among the injured passengers was a 52-year-old woman who jumped off the train after the crash and broke one of her legs.

MTA officials said trains usually travel 15 mph to 20 mph through the area, a narrow stretch of track that is blocks from the Highland Park station.

The 14-mile Gold Line, which opened in 2003, connects Pasadena and Union Station in downtown Los Angeles.

About 20,000 people travel the route daily. Each car holds up to 144 passengers and costs $2.36 million.

Shuttle buses took passengers to stations south and north of the accident.

Heavy equipment was brought in to move the train.

andrew.blankstein@latimes.com
tami.abdollah@latimes.com

Also:

7 Injured When Gold Line Train, Truck Collide

KCBS-TV
September 11, 2007

LOS ANGELES ― Seven people were injured today, one of them critically, when a Metro Gold Line train collided with a pickup truck in the Highland Park area, authorities said.

The train was southbound when it collided with the pickup at 7:54 a.m. in the 100 block of North Avenue 55, said Metro's Jose Ubaldo. According to a witness, the truck may have run a red light, he said.

Firefighters freed the driver of the pickup, and paramedics took him to a hospital in critical condition, said d'Lisa Davies of the Los Angeles Fire Department.

A half-dozen people on the train -- four passengers, the train's operator and a sheriff's deputy -- complained of neck and back pain, Ubaldo said.

Rail service was interrupted until 1:30 p.m., he said.


Also:

• LAFD Blog
  
• LAFD_Alert
  
• Pictures of the accident in the San Gabriel Valley Tribune
  

Blue Line Hits Truck and Injures 6 in Downtown LA

6 Injured When Truck, Blue Line Train Collide

KCBS-TV
August 27, 2007

LOS ANGELES ― Six people were injured when a truck and a Metro Blue Line train collided south of downtown late Monday, affecting rail travel between Los Angeles and Long Beach, authorities said.

The accident took place at 5:26 p.m. at the intersection of Washington Boulevard and Maple Avenue, according to the Metropolitan Transportation Authority's Helen Gilstrap.

At least three people were taken to medical centers, he said, but an MTA official described their injuries as minor.

Rail travel between Los Angeles and Long Beach was affected by the collision, Gilstrap said. A bus bridge will be established between the Grand Avenue and San Pedro Street stations, she said.

Gilstrap said it was unclear how long the service would be interrupted.

Blue Line Hits Pick-Up at 12th/Flower

Motorist Injured In Collision With Metro Train

KCBS-TV
July 18, 2007

LOS ANGELES ― A motorist was slightly injured Wednesday in a collision between a pickup truck and a Metro Blue Line train in downtown Los Angeles, authorities said.

The accident occurred shortly before 6 a.m. at Flower and 12th streets, said Los Angeles police Officer Sara Faden.

No one was hurt on the train, which stopped at the location. The driver of the pickup was taken to a hospital for treat

Blue Line Injures Elderly Motorist at Venice

Man, 71, Injured When Car, Blue Line Train Collide

KCBS-TV
June 14, 2007

LOS ANGELES ― A Metro Blue Line train and a vehicle collided Thursday near downtown Los Angeles, slightly injuring the 71-year-old man driving the vehicle, according to a fire official.

The collision was reported at 8:38 a.m. near Venice Boulevard and South Flower Street, according to Ron Myers of the Los Angeles Fire Department.

The driver of the vehicle was treated at the scene for minor arm pains, Myers said.

Blue Line Kills 20 year old on Washington Blvd

Blue Line Train Involved in Fatality
20-year-old Female Run Over

KABC-TV
April 14, 2007

LOS ANGELES - A young woman was fatally run over by a Blue Line train on the south side of downtown Saturday, a fire official said.

Paramedics were sent to the 1800 block of South San Pedro Street at 12:28 p.m., said Los Angeles city fire spokesperson d'Lisa Davies.

The Long Beach-bound light-rail train was unable to stop before striking 20-year-old Maxmiliana Gomez. The Blue Line driver stated that a group of three -- two males and Gomez -- attempted to run across the tracks in front of the train. The young woman was unsuccessful in her attempt and she was declared dead at the scene.

"Maxi Force Airbags" were used to extricate the body from underneath the train, which took an hour.

The accident delayed service on the downtown-to-Long-Beach line.

Blue Line Totals SUV in Long Beach

Blue Line collides with SUV

Long Beach Press-Telegram
By Tomio Geron
April 13, 2007

An SUV traveling southbound on Long Beach Boulevard made a wrong-way turn onto Seventh Street in front of a Metro train, which totaled the SUV and resulted in severe damage to the front of the train. A passenger in the SUV was treated at the scene.

The accident occurred when the driver of a silver Ford Expedition traveling southbound on Long Beach Boulevard made a wrong turn heading east onto westbound Seventh Street.

The southbound train, with about 75 passengers aboard, struck the SUV and dragged it a short distance through the intersection before stopping.

The driver of the SUV was uninjured, but was taken to a hospital as a precaution, said Will Nash, a Long Beach Fire Department spokesman.

A passenger in the vehicle was treated and released at the scene.

There were no injuries reported among the train riders, said Metro spokesman Jose Ubaldo.

Long Beach Boulevard was closed to traffic for several hours between Sixth and Eighth streets while emergency crews responded to the scene and removed the SUV, which was stuck to the front of the train.

The Blue Line was diverted around the damaged train and continued to operate in both directions. Ubaldo said the damaged train would be taken to a yard to be inspected or repaired. Nash said he did not know why the driver tried to make the illegal turn.

The SUV had Pennsylvania license plates, Nash said.

Trenton Barnett, 31, of Long Beach, was eating breakfast in a McDonald's restaurant that is directly in front of where the accident occurred.

"I heard screaming, then I saw the train was dragging the truck to a complete stop," Barnett said.

Blue Line Hits Woman in Compton

Woman Dashes Across Tracks, Hit By Blue Line Train

KCBS-TV
March 2, 2007

COMPTON, Calif. ― A woman who was struck by a Metro Blue Line train in Compton was hospitalized in good condition, a sheriff's sergeant said.

The accident occurred about 10:50 p.m. Thursday at the Alondra Boulevard grade crossing, said Sgt. Judson Doyle of the sheriff's Compton station.

"According to eyewitnesses, she just appeared to be in a hurry," he said. "Luckily, the train just barely clipped her."

The woman was taken to Long Beach Memorial Medical Center to be treated for what Doyle described as minor leg injuries.

The woman was crossing from east to west when she was struck by a southbound train, he said. The grade crossing is controlled by flashing lights and barrier arms.

It was unclear if the woman would be cited in connection with the accident, pending the outcome an investigation, Doyle said.

Man Hit by Blue Line Fighting for His Life

Man struck, killed by Metro train

Los Angeles Times
February 05, 2007

A man died Sunday after stepping in front of a Metro Blue Line commuter train in South Los Angeles.

The unidentified man, described as about 45 years old, appeared to intentionally move into the path of the northbound train as it approached 48th Place near Long Beach Avenue, police said. Witnesses said the man was walking near the tracks about 4:30 p.m. when he ducked under a guardrail and stood on the tracks, facing the train, according to LAPD Officer Martha Garcia.

Rescuers got the victim out from under the train. He had suffered massive head injuries, said Los Angeles Fire Department spokesman Brian Humphrey. The man died at County-USC Medical Center. The 57-year-old train operator complained of illness and was treated at the scene. No passengers were hurt.



Rescuers Extricate Man From Underneath Train Victim Reportedly In Critical Condition

KCBS-TV
February 4, 2007

LOS ANGELES ― A man who was hit by a Metro Blue Line train and got stuck beneath it in South Los Angeles Sunday was fighting for his life, a fire official said.

The man was reported underneath the northbound train at 4:39 p.m. on Long Beach Avenue at East 48th Place, according to Brian Humphrey of the Los Angeles Fire Department.

Paramedics extricated the man, who was not under any wheels. The man, who appeared to be about 45 years old, was then taken to County-USC Medical Center in very critical condition with injuries that included severe head trauma, Humphrey said.

No one on board the train was injured, but the 57-year-old train operator asked for medical assessment, he said.

It was not immediately known how the man got underneath the train.

The Los Angeles Police Department and the sheriff's department were investigating.



Man Struck by Blue Line Train

KABC-TV
February 4, 2007

LOS ANGELES -- A man who was hit by a Metro Blue Line train and got stuck beneath it in South Los Angeles Sunday was fighting for his life, a fire official said.

The man was reported underneath the northbound train at 4:39 p.m. on Long Beach Avenue at East 48th Place, said Brian Humphrey of the Los Angeles Fire Department.

Paramedics extricated the man, who was not under any wheels.

The man, who appeared to be about 45 years old, was then taken to County- USC Medical Center in very critical condition with injuries that included severe head trauma, Humphrey said.

No one on board the train was injured, but the 57-year-old train operator asked for medical assessment, he said.

It was not immediately known how the man got underneath the train.

The Los Angeles Police Department and the sheriff's department were investigating.

Also:

• LAFD_Alerts man had severe head trauma
  

14 Year Old Boy Killed by Blue Line Carrying His Own Sister

Boy, 14, killed by train is mourned

Los Angeles Times
By Angie Green
January 27, 2007

A day after 14-year-old Lavert Baker Jr. lost his life after being struck by a Metro Blue Line commuter train, his family members grappled with whether his loss could have been avoided.

“He was my heart,” his father, Lavert Baker Sr., said Friday. “I lost a big part of my heart yesterday.”

The teenager was hit Thursday afternoon in Watts as he walked home from school. Witnesses said he was in the middle of the train tracks when warning lights started blinking and the guard gates lowered. A spokesperson for the L.A. County Metropolitan Transportation Authority, which operates the train, said an investigation is underway.

By chance, Lavert’s 15-year-old sister, Moneisha, was a passenger on the train but did not learn that it was her brother who had been struck until she arrived at a relative’s home in East Los Angeles. Of 13 siblings, Lavert and Moneisha shared a special bond because of their closeness in age, the elder Baker said.

“The two were like this,” he said, holding his index and middle fingers together.

Lavert, an eighth-grader at Charles R. Drew Middle School, was crossing the four-lane tracks at the intersection of East 92nd Street and Graham Avenue when, his father said, he was “blindsided.” Baker said witnesses told him the guard gates were up before his son entered the train right-of-way about 3:45 p.m.

Earlier reports said he was riding a scooter, but an eyewitness said the scooter was brought to the scene by another neighbor boy after the accident.

Blanca Mendoza, 37, was heading east on 92nd Street and saw Baker standing in the middle of the four-lane tracks that run south and north. Mendoza said Friday in an interview that there was no scooter near him.

“He was in the middle when the lights started blinking and the arms went down,” she said. She heard the train’s horn three times and saw the train slow as it approached the boy, who turned to look just before the train hit him.

The teenager took the same route every day, his father said. The elder Baker was at his home less than a mile from the crossing when Mendoza and another resident rushed to tell him about the accident.

Baker, 51, found his son on the ground as a crowd began to gather. He rushed to his side and held him despite officials’ asking him to step aside. Lavert was taken to St. Francis Medical Center in Lynwood and was pronounced dead at 4:11 p.m., said Lt. David Smith of the L.A. County coroner’s office.

The younger Baker, who was nicknamed “Vert Vert,” was described as “comical” by his mother, Marvella Graves, and “full of joy” by his father.

At the accident scene, Lavert’s father set up memorial candles in the shape of a “V” Thursday night.

Friends and family on Friday described Lavert as a well-liked and ambitious teen who was a video game fanatic and liked to play football and basketball. He wanted to be an electrician and go to college.

“He always showed me he wanted to go to college,” Baker said. “He would say, ‘You just watch, Dad, I’m going to be the first one.’ ”

A constant stream of friends and family members stopped by the Grape Street residence Friday to offer their condolences.

To help raise funds for memorial services, the 92nd Street Elementary School is holding a car wash today from 9 a.m. to noon. On Friday afternoon, students held posters they made with colored markers advertising the event.

Lavert was the second fatality this month involving a Metro Blue Line commuter train. On Jan. 5, a male was struck by a train in the Long Beach area, said Helen Gilstrap, an MTA spokeswoman.

The Metro Blue Line, L.A.’s first light-rail transit system, runs from 7th Street in downtown L.A. through Vernon, Huntington Park, South Gate, Watts, Compton and Carson to downtown Long Beach. It carries about 63,000 passengers daily and has a 55 mph maximum allowable speed.

From June 2005 to June 2006, 27 people were injured and five were killed in Blue Line accidents, Gilstrap said. The commuter trains run every five minutes from 3 to 7 p.m. at the intersection where Lavert was struck.

Gilstrap said the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department and the MTA are investigating Lavert’s death. She could not answer specific questions about the circumstances surrounding the accident.

“Everything is under investigation at this time,” Gilstrap said. “The results will take two weeks to give you a definitive answer.”

angie.green@latimes.com

Also:

• KABC-TV
  

Man Killed by Blue Line in North Long Beach

Man hit, killed by commuter train

Los Angeles Times
January 06, 2007

A pedestrian was struck and killed by a Blue Line commuter train Friday afternoon, a transit official said.

The incident occurred about 4:30 p.m. as the southbound train approached Spring Street at Del Mar Avenue, said Helen Gilstrap, a spokeswoman for the Metropolitan Transportation Authority. The male victim was not identified.

The Blue Line was closed for more than two hours while police investigated the incident.


Pedestrian Struck, Killed By Train In Long Beach

KCBS-TV
January 5, 2007

LONG BEACH, Calif. ― A pedestrian was fatally struck by a southbound Metro Blue Line train in Long Beach late Friday.

The collision happened at 4:35 p.m. at Spring Street and Del Mar Avenue, MTA spokeswoman Helen Gilstrap said.

Kenneth W. Strong, 57, walked in front of the train, said Gilstrap.

Gilstrap said the MTA established a bus "bridge" between Willow and Wardlow Road to take the passengers to their destinations.

"People will not be stranded," Gilstrap said, although delays of two to three hours were expected.

Gold Line Kills Man in Highland Park

As reported on the LAFD Blog

Blue Line Hits Fire Truck at Central

11 taken to hospitals after Blue Line train hits firetruck
About 250 rush-hour commuters were aboard when accident occurred at Washington and Central, a 'notorious bad intersection'

Los Angeles Times
By Jean Guccione
December 23, 2006

Los Angeles, CA - Ten passengers and a firefighter were taken to hospitals for minor injuries Friday evening when a Blue Line commuter train struck a firetruck on an emergency call near downtown Los Angeles, authorities said.

The ladder truck and its crew were crossing Washington Boulevard at Central Avenue about 5 p.m. when the accident occurred, police and fire officials said.

"It looks like a big oops," said Los Angeles Police Sgt. Jeff Tepich, who was on the scene. "If [the train] is pulling a lot of weight even at a slow speed it's hard to stop."

The six-car train, which was carrying passengers from downtown Los Angeles to Long Beach, struck the center of the ladder truck and derailed, blocking both tracks. The truck was on its way to a small fire; a second engine was sent in its place.

A spokesman for the Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority said the train operator had a green light when she proceeded into the intersection and did not see or hear the firetruck, which had its lights and sirens on.

"She said she did not hear the firetruck, but when she saw it in the intersection she used the emergency brake," spokesman Dave Sotero said.

"It is a notorious bad intersection," Assistant Fire Chief Ralph M. Terrazas said.

In response to several fatal collisions along the Blue Line route, flashing yellow signs have been added to warn motorists turning right on Washington to watch for the crossing train. No such warnings have been installed on Central.

The collision is under investigation, but Tepich said the train has the right of way, especially when the light is red.

"Our policy is to come to a complete stop at all red lights and stop signs before entering an intersection," Terrazas said.

The train, which was traveling in an area with a speed limit of 35 mph, was carrying about 250 rush-hour commuters, he said. City Fire Department personnel said they assessed about 25 passengers for mostly minor injuries at the scene.

The injured firefighter was working as the apparatus operator, steering the long truck from the rear. After the crash, he complained of back and neck pain, Terrazas said.

The tracks were closed in both directions for more than three hours while officials investigated the crash and removed debris.

The firetruck was towed, and the train, with a crushed front windshield, was pushed back onto the tracks.

Dozens of commuters walked down Central Avenue in the dark between the San Pedro and Washington stations, where transit service began and ended. Additional buses were added to bridge the service interruption, Sotero said.

Under MTA policy, the driver was required to be tested for possible drug and alcohol use.



L.A. Firetruck Collides With Train, Slightly Injuring at Least 10

Associated Press
December 22, 2006

LOS ANGELES -- A collision between a Blue Line train and a Los Angeles Fire Department ladder truck left a firefighter and several train riders with minor injuries Saturday.

It was unclear if the damage from Friday's 5:04 p.m. accident at Central Avenue and Washington Boulevard put the train out of commission, but it was was knocked off its tracks.

The train hit the ladder truck broadside, close to coupling joint where the tractors attaches to the rest of the rig.

Fire officials did not say where the truck was going, or if the lights and siren were activated.

Dave Sotero of the Metropolitan Transportation Authority, which operates the Blue Line, said the train's operator had a green signal to proceed through the intersection and did not hear a siren. She did see its emergency lights, he said.

Sotero said the maximum speed of the Blue Line trains in that area is 35 mph. The cause of the collision was still under investigation, he said.

Ten people on the downtown-to-Long-Beach commuter train complained of injuries and were taken to hospitals to be checked out for mostly minor injuries, officials said. One person was reported to have been seriously injured. The extent of injuries to the firefighter were not disclosed.

Damage estimates for the train and truck were unavailable.

Also:

• Footage from KCBS
• Covered on LAFD Blog
  
• Pictures on LAFD Flickr page

Blue Line Hits Vehicle at 18th & Flower

Metro Rail Train, Vehicle Collide Downtown

KCBS-TV
December 18, 2006

LOS ANGELES ― No one was injured Sunday night when a Metro Rail train and a vehicle collided in downtown Los Angeles, police said.

The accident happened about 8:45 p.m. on South Flower Street at West 18th Street, said LAPD Officer Marta Garcia of Media Relations.

The train runs north and south along Flower, Garcia said.

No one was injured, she said.

The cause of the crash was not immediately known.

Blue Line Kills Man at Vernon Station

Man Killed By MTA Blue Line Train

KCBS-TV (with footage)
November 7, 2006

LOS ANGELES ― A Metropolitan Transportation Authority Blue Line train struck and killed a man on Monday night. According to police, he was trying to outrun the train.

A southbound train struck the 31-year-old man at 8:41 p.m. at the Vernon Avenue station at Long Beach Avenue, said Lt. Jason Lum of the sheriff's Transit Bureau.

Witnesses said that the man ran around the lowered arms of a crossing guard in an attempt to reach the other side before the train arrived, said Sgt. Jerry Moya of the LAPD's Central Traffic Division.

"He tried to beat the train," Moya said.

The man was pronounced dead at the scene, he said.

The train struck the man as it was slowing down, according to Gayle Anderson of the MTA. It was not clear how fast this particular train had been going at the time of the accident.

The Blue Line operated only on one track Monday night for two hours following the accident, Anderson said.



Police: Man Was Killed Trying To Outrun Metro Train

KNBC-TV
November 7, 2006

LOS ANGELES -- A man was killed when he tried to outrun an oncoming Metropolitan Transportation Authority Blue Line train in South Los Angeles, authorities said Tuesday.

A southbound train struck the 31-year-old man at 8:41 p.m. Monday at the Vernon Avenue station at Long Beach Avenue, said Lt. Jason Lum of the sheriff's Transit Bureau.

Witnesses told investigators that the man had run around the lowered arms of a crossing guard in an attempt to reach the other side before the train arrived, said Sgt. Jerry Moya of the LAPD's Central Traffic Division.

"He tried to beat the train," Moya said.

The victim was pronounced dead at the scene, he said.

The train, which travels at 50 mph, struck the man as it was in the process of slowing down, said MTA spokeswoman Gayle Anderson. It was not clear how fast this particular train had been going at the time of the accident, she said.

MTA officials shut down the track where the accident occurred for about two hours afterward, Anderson said.

City News Service contributed to this report.

Blue Line Kills 17 and 27 Year Old and Leaves 7 Year Old in Critical Condition

2 Killed, 2 Injured in Car Hit by Train

Los Angeles Times
By Nancy Cleeland
August 21, 2006

A man and his sister were killed and his 7-year-old son was critically injured Sunday morning when the man turned their car in front of a Blue Line train near downtown Los Angeles and the vehicle was dragged half a block along the tracks, police said.

The siblings’ grandmother, 68, who was in the back seat, was being treated at Los Angeles County-USC Medical Center for chest pains, said Det. Josephine Mapson of the Los Angeles Police Department.

The driver was identified as Cesar Herrera, 27, of Los Angeles. His sister, Maria A. Herrera, was 17. Police did not identify the survivors.

Six of the 92 passengers on the Metropolitan Transportation Authority train were treated for minor injuries and released, Mapson said.

Both the car and the train, which runs at street level along the center of Washington Boulevard, were traveling east. The train’s operator told police that he saw a maroon Mazda stopped in the left-turn lane ahead of him at the intersection of Maple Avenue. Just as the train was about to pass, the traffic light turned green for through traffic but the left-turn arrow remained red.

Nevertheless, the Mazda driver turned left in front of the train, and the car was struck and pushed 162 feet east.

Mapson said the driver may have misread the traffic signal, which also has a box with flashing lights indicating an approaching train.

Los Angeles Fire Department personnel cut away the roof of the smashed car to remove the boy and his great-grandmother.

“I’ve been here 4 1/2 years and I’ve lost count of the number of accidents I’ve seen with this train,” said fire Battalion Chief Ray Gomez.


2 die when car collides with Blue Line train

Daily Breeze
August 21, 2006

Two people were killed and two other people, including a 7-year- old boy, were critically injured Sunday when the vehicle they were in collided with a Blue Line train in downtown Los Angeles, a fire official said.

The crash was reported at Maple Avenue and Washington Boulevard shortly after 9 a.m., said Brian Ballton of the Los Angeles Fire Department.

A 25-year-old man, who was driving, and his 17-year-old sister, were pronounced dead at the scene, he said.

A 55-year-old woman and the 7-year-old boy were taken to Los Angeles County/USC Medical Center in critical condition, he said.

Witnesses told KABC Channel 7 it appeared the man tried to make a left turn in front of the train.

About 50 people were on the train, and six were taken to hospitals with minor injuries, Ballton said.

According to KCBS Channel 2, it's the third crash involving an MTA Blue Line train in eight days.

On Aug. 13, a Blue Line train collided with a car at Flower Street and Pico Boulevard downtown, injuring the driver of a Honda, his passenger and several rail passengers.

Two days ago, a woman suffered minor injuries when she tried to make a turn in front of a Blue Line train near Flower Street and Venice Boulevard and was struck.


Two Dead, Eight Injured After Car Crashes Into MTA Train

KABC-TV
August 20, 2006

LOS ANGELES - Two people were killed and two others, including a 7- year-old boy, were critically injured Sunday when the vehicle they were in crashed into an MTA Blue Line train, a fire official said.

Of the 50 people on the train which was hit near downtown Los Angeles, six were transported to area hospitals with minor injuries, said Los Angeles City fire spokesperson Brian Ballton.

Fire personnel were dispatched to the scene of the crash in the area of Maple Avenue and Washington Boulevard at 9:03 a.m., Ballton said.

The 40-year-old male driver and the front seat passenger, a 40-year-old woman, were pronounced dead at the scene. The other occupants, a 55- year-old woman and a 7-year-old boy, were transported to Los Angeles County/USC Medical Center in critical condition.

A description of the vehicle involved in the crash was not immediately available, Ballton said.


Also:

• Post on the LAFD Blog mentions the 7-year old boy's name is Anthony
• Pictures from the accident are on the LAFD Flickr page
  

Blue Line Injures Motorist at Venice

Car, Blue Line Train Results In Minor Injuries

KCBS-TV
August 19, 2006

LOS ANGELES ― A woman was injured Friday after she turned her car into the path of a Blue Line train, a Los Angeles Fire Department official said.

The collision happened near Flower Street and Venice Boulevard at 6:20 p.m., department spokesman Brian Ballton said. Three ambulances were sent to the scene, but no one was taken to a hospital.

"Both occupants of the car were wearing seat belts," Ballton said. "If they hadn't been, it's a high probability they would have been severely hurt."

The only person injured from the accident was the driver of the car, and she was treated at the scene and released, he said.

If someone was in the back seat of the car, where the train hit, there would have been critical injuries, Ballton said.

There were 80 passengers on the train.

Blue Line Injures 7 and Demolishes Car at Pico

7 Injured After Blue Line Train, Car Collide

KCBS-TV
August 13, 2006

LOS ANGELES ― Seven people were injured Saturday when a Metro Blue Line train collided with a car in downtown Los Angeles.

The accident, which happened at 8:50 p.m. at Pico Boulevard and Flower Street, occurred when a black Honda attempted to make a left turn across train tracks into a parking lot. The Metro Blue Line, which was on its way to Long Beach, struck the car at full speed, Los Angeles police Sgt. Marianus vonKorff said.

The car was demolished, but the driver and passenger - both men in their 40s - escaped with only minor injuries and were taken to California Hospital Medical Center, Los Angeles City fire Capt. Brian Ballton said.

The driver may have broken his arm, vonKorff said.

At least five passengers were taken to local hospitals with minor injuries, Ballton said.

The train was heading from Union Station to Long Beach.

Blue Line Crushes Car Leaves Driver in Critical Condition

Accident at Washington/San Pedro.

Train was going 30 mph and pushed car 150 feet.

Footage from KCBS-TV

Blue Line Kills Man at Artesia Station

Man Is Struck, Killed by Blue Line Train

Los Angeles Times
April 05, 2006

A man was killed by a Metro Rail Blue Line train at the Artesia station Tuesday, officials said.

The man, whose name was not released, was walking on or near the tracks about 1 p.m. when he was struck by a southbound train pulling into the station, Metropolitan Transportation Authority officials said.

The station was closed for more than three hours, delaying commutes by at least 30 minutes.

Bicyclist Hit by Blue Line at 55th Street

Train Critically Injures Bicyclist

KCBS-TV
March 17, 2006

LOS ANGELES ― A bicyclist was critically injured Friday after he was hit by a southbound Metro Blue Line train.

The accident happened at 5:33 p.m. at the intersection of East 55th Street and Long Beach Boulevard, the Los Angeles Fire Department's Brian Humphrey said.

The man was pedaling his bicycle at the signalized intersection when the crash happened. The bicyclist suffered head injuries and was taken to County-USC Medical Center.


Also:

• Covered on the LAFD Blog
  

Blue Line Critical Injures Motorist at San Pedro

Driver In Critical Condition After Metro Collision

KCBS-TV
March 9, 2006

LOS ANGELES ― One person was critically injured Tuesday in a collision between a Metro Blue Line train and a car at San Pedro Street and Washington Boulevard.

The driver of a small black car going west on Washington turned left in front of the southbound train, according to Gayle Anderson of the Metropolitan Transportation Authority.

Tens minutes prior to the collision, a DASH bus slammed into a building in downtown Los Angeles at 7th and Hope streets.

Blue Line Kills Man in Compton

Man Killed by Blue Line Train in Compton

Los Angeles Times
July 12, 2005

A fast-moving MTA Blue Line train struck and killed a man as he crossed the tracks Monday in Compton, authorities said.

According to Metropolitan Transportation Authority spokesman Bill Heard, eyewitnesses said the unidentified man waited at the intersection of Alondra Boulevard and Willowbrook Avenue for a northbound train to pass. He then started across the tracks and was hit by a southbound train, Heard said.

The 6:33 p.m. accident shut down part of the MTA’s most heavily traveled light-rail line, which runs from downtown Los Angeles to Long Beach. Buses shuttled passengers between the Compton and Artesia stations.

More than 65 people – both motorists and pedestrians – have been killed by Blue Line trains since the line opened in 1990.

Blue Line Hits Car in Downtown LA

Footage no longer available on KCBS-TV

Blue Line Kills Man at Florence Station

Man Is Killed by MTA Blue Line Train in South L.A.

Los Angeles Times
November 26, 2004

A man was killed Thursday by a Metropolitan Transportation Authority Blue Line train in South Los Angeles, a sheriff's deputy said.

The man was struck about 3 p.m. on tracks near East Florence and Graham avenues, according to Deputy Tania Plunkett.

Sheriff's homicide detectives were investigating the death, Plunkett said. She said the section of light-rail line between Los Angeles and Long Beach was closed after the incident.

The man, whose identity was withheld pending notification of next of kin, was pronounced dead at the scene.

A person waiting near the Florence station platform fainted and was taken to a hospital after seeing the man struck, Plunkett said.


Man Struck, Killed By Train In Los Angeles

Associated Press
November 25, 2004

A man was struck and killed by a Metropolitan Transportation Authority train Thursday, authorities said.

Nobody on the train was hurt.

The man was pronounced dead at the scene after the 3 p.m. accident, Los Angeles County sheriff's Deputy Carlos Lopez said.

His identity was not immediately released.

The train, carrying 400 passengers from downtown to Long Beach, was delayed for about 30 minutes, MTA spokesman Jose Ubaldo said.

The accident was under investigation.

Blue Line Kills Woman Pushing Shopping Cart

Pedestrian Is Killed by Train

Los Angeles Times
By Zeke Minaya
September 2, 2004

A 46-year-old woman pushing a cart of empty bottles and cans was struck and killed Wednesday by a Long Beach-bound Blue Line train, authorities said.

The accident occurred about 4:30 p.m. as the train approached the Florence station on Graham Avenue, said Jose Ubaldo, a spokesman for the MTA.

All the warning systems indicating an approaching train — including blowing whistles and flashing lights — were working, Ubaldo said.

With a rush-hour crowd gathering at the station, the woman joined a group of people, including her companion, in racing across the tracks in front of the oncoming train, Ubaldo said.

She was struck near the entrance of the platform and died at the scene, Ubaldo said. "She almost made it," Ubaldo said.

Authorities did not release the name of the victim, a transient, pending notification of relatives.

The MTA and the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department have opened investigations. Service to the station was halted for 30 to 45 minutes, Ubaldo said. The 22-mile Blue Line runs from Long Beach to downtown Los Angeles.

Including Wednesday's fatality, more than 22 occupants of vehicles and more than 40 pedestrians have been killed along the Blue Line since it began operating in 1990, making it the deadliest of the MTA's four rail routes. The commuter trains sometimes move at up to 55 mph.

Gold Line Takes Child's Limb because MTA was Too Cheap to Build a Fence

Freeway wreck involving commuter train kills three in Pasadena

Associated Press
August 12, 2004

PASADENA, Calif. - An automobile rolled over on a freeway Thursday, killing three people and injuring three others, including a boy who was hurled onto adjacent commuter rail tracks where a train severed one of his legs, authorities said.

The boy was in critical condition and two other surviving victims had major head injuries and broken bones, said Lisa Derdarian of the Pasadena Fire Department. Two others were hospitalized for emotional distress, she added. The identities of the victims were not immediately released.

The accident occurred about 10:10 a.m. on the Foothill Freeway. The Metro Gold Line light rail track runs down the median, separated from the east- and westbound lanes of the freeway by fences.

Two people died at the scene and a third was pronounced dead at a hospital, Derdarian said. No one on the train was hurt but service to and from the Pasadena terminal station was halted for about an hour, said Marc Littman, a spokesman for the Metropolitan Transportation Authority. Passengers had to use a station about a mile away, he said.

Pasadena is 16 miles northeast of downtown Los Angeles.

Blue Line Kills Motorist in Watts and Injures 14

MTA Train Hits Car, Killing Woman

Los Angeles Times
By Kevin Pang and Arlene Martinez
March 02, 2004

A motorist turned into the path of an MTA Blue Line train at a Watts intersection Monday, killing one of the car’s occupants and injuring 14 people.

The most seriously injured were traveling in the 2003 Honda Civic, including the 45-year-old driver, who was listed in critical condition at Martin Luther King Jr./Drew Medical Center. A boy in the back seat sustained minor injuries and was taken to Harbor-UCLA Medical Center.

Nine passengers aboard the train were sent to nearby hospitals for minor neck and back injuries. Three others on the train were treated at the scene. Sara Silvia Tovar, 48, was pronounced dead at the accident site.

Authorities said the car attempted to turn left onto southbound Wilmington Avenue from Willowbrook Avenue about 8 a.m. when the train, traveling about 50 mph, struck the passenger side of the vehicle.

The car then hit an MTA power pole, knocking down one of its support beams.

The car was pushed alongside the rails until it came to rest next to the train, about 200 feet from the site of the collision.

Los Angeles police spokesman Capt. Terry Hara said investigators believe the motorist was at fault because left turns are not allowed onto Wilmington Avenue from Willowbrook Avenue.

“The car wasn’t on the correct side of the street, it was in the middle,” Hara said.

Residents say drivers – as well as pedestrians – are careless while crossing the tracks.

“I’ve seen it so many times

“Once the guard rails come down [drivers] don’t know whether to go back or front.”

Tigerino and other witnesses said he heard the warning sounds of the crossing gate lowering and moments later heard a loud impact.

The 22-mile Blue Line runs from Long Beach to downtown Los Angeles.

Including Monday’s fatality, 22 occupants of vehicles and 43 pedestrians have been killed along the Blue Line since it began operating in 1990, making it the deadliest of the MTA’s four rail routes.

Ten accidents have occurred at the Wilmington intersection alone, including five fatalities, said Metropolitan Transportation Authority spokesman Rick Jager.

“The corridor has been particularly difficult for us. There are a lot of different exits and intersections,” Jager said. “We’ve worked with the city to erect more signage.”

Still, there are several other intersections along the route that have recorded significantly more accidents than the Wilmington intersection, including Venice Boulevard with 30 vehicular accidents, San Pedro Street with 23 accidents and 20th Street in Long Beach with 20 accidents.

Before 1990, slow-moving freight trains used the tracks, Jager said, and people may not realize that the Blue Line trains are moving up to 55 mph.

This is the third accident on the Blue Line this year, but the first involving a fatality.

The accident caused disruptions to MTA Blue Line service between the 103rd Street and Imperial/Wilmington stations during the busy Monday morning period. Jager said passengers experienced 30-minute delays when they were bused around the accident scene and transferred to another train.

Blue Line Hits Teen Driver in Long Beach

Police Seek Identity of Driver Hurt in Crash

Los Angeles Times
January 20, 2004

Police were seeking the public’s help Monday in identifying a motorist who survived a crash with a Blue Line train.

The crash occurred at 9:11 p.m. Saturday when a tan 1985 Toyota Corolla turned into the path of a train at Long Beach Boulevard and Burnett Street, said Officer Greg Schirmer. The car’s license plate number is 5CPH259.

The driver, a male Latino believed to be in his late teens, with no identification, remained hospitalized and was unable to communicate.

Anyone with information is asked to call Det. Brian Watt at (562) 570-5520.

Blue Line Hits Cyclist in Willowbrook

Blue Line Train Injures Bicyclist Crossing Track

Los Angeles Times
January 09, 2003

A bicyclist was hospitalized after being struck by a Blue Line train in Willowbrook on Wednesday afternoon, officials said.

The man was hit at 4:30 as he attempted to cross the track after maneuvering around the four gates at the crossing at 119th Street near the Imperial station, an MTA spokesman said. The accident caused delays on the Blue Line for about an hour.

Blue Line Injures 21 Year Old Motorist

2 Injured When Car Hits Train

Los Angeles Times
Times Staff Writer
November 24, 2002

A 21-year-old driver and her passenger were injured Saturday when she drove through a lowered railroad crossing barrier and into the path of a Metro Blue Line train in Long Beach, police said.

It was the second serious incident in as many days involving a Blue Line train.

Three people on board the train, including the operator, received minor injuries in the 6:30 a.m. incident.

Police identified the driver as Elena Taofi of Long Beach. She was reported in fair condition Saturday night at Long Beach Memorial Medical Center.

Her passenger, Faamu Lufi Sao, also of Long Beach, was in fair condition at the same hospital, where he was being treated for severe head injuries and a broken pelvis.

Long Beach officers investigating the incident said Taofi was driving a 1997 Nissan Altima west on Wardlow Road when she smashed through the lowered railroad crossing arm at Pacific Avenue, breaking it off its base.
A southbound train entering the crossing struck the car.

Train operator Rosie Haynes, 51, was treated at a local hospital clinic for a shoulder injury.

Two of the roughly 50 train passengers also sustained minor injuries and were treated at the scene, police said.

Just one day before, a 16-year-old girl was struck and killed by a Blue Line train south of downtown Los Angeles.

The Los Angeles County coroner's office on Saturday identified her as Angela Barahona of Los Angeles.

Witnesses told Los Angeles police that the girl was walking across the street against a red light when she was hit by a southbound train on East Washington Boulevard.

She died at the scene.

Blue Line Kills 16 Year Old Girl Near San Pedro Station

Blue Line Train Kills Teenager in Crosswalk

Los Angeles Times
By Kurt Streeter
November 23, 2002

A 16-year-old girl was killed Friday when she was struck by a Blue Line train on a street just south of downtown Los Angeles.

The accident raises the death toll to 61 on the light railway since it opened in 1990. The 22-mile line connecting downtown with Long Beach has many stretches that run among cars and pedestrians on busy streets. It has the worst fatal accident rate among light-rail lines in California and is among the deadliest railways in the nation, according to Federal Transit Administration statistics.

Witnesses told police the girl was in a crosswalk when she was hit about 7:30 a.m. by a southbound train near a station platform in the 700 block of East Washington Boulevard, said LAPD Sgt. Kevin Custard.

The witnesses said the girl, whose name was being withheld pending notification of her family, was crossing the street against a pedestrian red-light signal.

“She apparently was rushing across the street, even though she didn’t have a signal to go,” Custard said. “The train hit her and ran her over.”

She was pronounced dead at the scene by Los Angeles Fire Department officials.

Full service on the Blue Line was stopped for about two hours, an MTA spokesman said.

The Blue Line carries about 62,000 riders daily, making it one of the busiest light-rail lines in the nation.

Blue Line Kills 25 Year Old at Vernon Station

Man Struck by Blue Line Train Is Critically Hurt

Los Angeles Times
July 20, 2001

A 25-year-old man was critically injured Thursday after being struck by a Blue Line train in South Los Angeles, authorities said.

The incident occurred in the 4400 block of South Long Beach Avenue about 5:10 p.m., said Fire Department spokesman Jim Wells. He was taken to California Hospital in “very, very critical condition” with massive head and chest injuries, Wells said.

Bridge to Be Built Where MTA Train Killed Youth - LA Times

Los Angeles Times
Times Staff Writer
February 25, 2000

Design work has begun on a pedestrian bridge over the Blue Line light rail tracks at the site where a 13-year-old boy was struck by a train and killed last summer.

The bridge, to be built at the intersection of 55th Street and Long Beach Avenue, will be funded by the Metropolitan Transportation Authority, which operates the rail line.

The MTA proposed the project in 1996, but plans for a bridge gained new urgency when Gilberto Reynaga was struck by a train last July 17 as he and a friend darted across the tracks while heading home from playing basketball.

After the accident, City Councilwoman Rita Walters, who has been pressing for the bridge for years, got the city to station a crossing guard at the intersection.

Construction of the bridge is scheduled to begin in November and completion is expected in June 2001.

MTA Can Do Little to Boost Crossing Safety, Study Finds - LA Times

Los Angeles Times
By Douglas P. Shuit
February 22, 2000

If anyone should know the dangers of the Metro Blue Line inside and out, it would be Los Angeles County Supervisor Yvonne Brathwaite Burke.

As head of the powerful Metropolitan Transportation Authority, Burke plays a leading role in setting policy for operating the Blue Line, whose trains operate along city streets and have killed 53 people since it opened in 1990. That is by far the most deaths for any light rail line in the state and is believed to be the most in the nation.

And, as someone who lives and works in the area served by the Blue Line, Burke regularly experiences the anxiety motorists face when crossing the tracks. Getting caught inside the gates when a train comes is a constant fear.

"I have not actually been stuck [inside the gates], but I have been concerned about getting stuck," she said. "If there is any traffic ahead of you as you start going across, there is a tremendous potential of getting caught. So, I tell you . . . I fly across the tracks."

Burke's comments are informative because the MTA, after a two- month in-house safety analysis, is essentially moving forward with its current Blue Line policy, which she indicates will not make her feel much safer.

Burke and others on the MTA's board of directors are finding that there are few dramatic moves they can make to improve safety on the heavily used rail line, which provides riders with as many as 57,000 trips a day on the 22-mile run between downtown Los Angeles and Long Beach.

The analysis, prompted by the deaths of six people Nov. 27 and Times stories exploring safety issues on the Blue Line, included an estimate that creating a grade separation--in effect, moving the tracks off the street--would cost as much as $1.6 billion. That is far more than the district can afford, and represents roughly twice the Blue Line's original construction cost.

That leaves MTA managers with a game plan that involves continuing the same policies that they have been following for years, with some tweaking here and there.

In an effort to reduce the number of so-called "S" turns, in which motorists use open traffic lanes to drive around closed traffic gates, the MTA plans to install four gates, rather than the conventional two, at as many as two crossings a year. Traffic signals also will be upgraded. And a stepped-up program of televised, public safety announcements, movie trailers, radio messages, billboards and school safety programs will be implemented.

At Imperial Highway, where there have been a number of accidents involving Blue Line trains, the city of Los Angeles, county, MTA and Caltrans are jointly financing construction of a $20-million bridge for motor vehicle traffic over the railroad tracks.

The MTA's safety program also would apply to the first phase of the 13.7-mile Pasadena light rail line. The Pasadena line is being built at street level, so will face similar traffic problems during its run through Lincoln Heights, Highland Park, South Pasadena and Pasadena. The line is being built by the Pasadena Blue Line Construction Authority, but is being financed and will be operated by the MTA.

During a hearing on Blue Line issues before the MTA's operations committee last week, Burke made a point of saying that the best chance of paying for grade separations comes during construction, because once a system is built the costs become prohibitive. Still, although she made it clear that she thinks grade separations would save lives, she said the MTA doesn't have money for grade separations on that system.

Residents along the proposed Pasadena route are becoming increasingly restive. Jim Leong, a retired businessman representing the Mount Washington Assn., pleaded for a grade separation during the operations committee hearing, although the Pasadena Blue Line Construction Authority has rejected the possibility of major changes to the project.

The Mount Washington Assn. is reconsidering its conditional support for the Pasadena rail line, in large part because of the Los Angeles line's safety record, Leong said. "When the Pasadena line was planned, we didn't have the experience of the Los Angeles Blue Line. Now we have 53 deaths. That is scaring some people," Leong said.

Richard Thorpe, chief executive officer of the Pasadena Blue Line Construction Authority, said he believes conditions on the Eastside are different from those on the Los Angeles-to-Long Beach line.

For one thing, the Pasadena line will not have freight trains running alongside its own trains, as does the Los Angeles line, Thorpe said. Nor will there be streets running parallel to the trains. Some of those who have studied the Los Angeles line believe the slowness of the Union Pacific freight trains frustrates motorists and causes them to take risks they might not ordinarily take. Left turns in front of trains are a leading contributor to Los Angeles Blue Line accidents.

MTA authorities have consistently argued that they believe the large number of deaths and injuries on the Los Angeles Blue Line is caused by risky behavior by pedestrians and motorists, who flout traffic laws and warning signals as they cross in front of trains.

An analysis of Blue Line accident records by The Times indicated that speed may be a contributor. It found that 85% of the deaths have occurred in the high-speed corridor, where trains go through intersections at 55 mph. An analysis comparing the Blue Line with light rail systems across the country found that the MTA trains operate at one of the highest average rates of speed. The Times also found that the last 18 deaths have all involved trains traveling south, whose speed tends to be higher through intersections.

MTA safety chief Paul Lennon, who put together the in-house analysis, said after the operations committee hearing that he is not recommending any changes in the speed of trains. He made it clear he still believes the main problem is that people go around closed crossing gates or ignore warning signals and horns. MTA investigations have held victims to have been at fault in all cases.

"The 55-mph speed I think is a very reasonable safe transit speed," he said. Influencing his belief is a fear that if the trains are slowed appreciably, the riders will return to cars. "My concern is that people might get off that train, find a $200 car and become a statistic someplace else. We are in the lifesaving business, as far as I am concerned."

Lennon said the MTA will continue to look into factors contributing to the string of accidents on the southbound tracks.

Burke said she is not satisfied with the steps Lennon is recommending. She said further steps must be taken "to prevent some of these accidents," but had no concrete proposals. Although the costs are prohibitive, she said, "I believe we have to look at some alternative for grade separation."

Car Hit by Blue Line Ricochets into Another

7 Suffer Minor Injuries When Train Hits Car

Los Angeles Times
By John L. Mitchell
December 23, 1999

An automobile drove around a closed crossing gate and was struck by a Metro Blue Line train Wednesday in Watts, resulting in minor injuries to seven people, an MTA official said.

The crash occurred about 11:08 a.m. as the southbound train traveled through the three-sided intersection at 114th Street and Wilmington and Willowbrook avenues, said Gary Wosk of the Metropolitan Transportation Authority.

The train was preparing to stop at the upcoming Imperial / Wilmington station when an elderly man drove his car around the crossing gate, Wosk said. The train operator was 90 feet away when he noticed the car and applied his emergency brakes, but the train clipped the car's right rear, sending it about 100 feet down Wilmington Avenue, where it rear-ended another auto.

Five people on the train complained of neck and back pain, and four were taken to hospitals, Wosk said. The drivers of both cars also suffered minor injuries and were treated.

The accident caused a 40-minute disruption of service.

Since 1992, there have been nine accidents between cars and Blue Line trains, including four fatalities, along that stretch of Wilmington Avenue that includes at least three intersections. Since the Blue Line opened in 1990, there have been 53 fatalities in accidents involving cars and pedestrians, Wosk said.

Where Rapid Transit Means Constant Risk - LA Times

Los Angeles Times
By Douglas P. Shuit
November 15, 1999

It’s Michael Walden’s first week as the operator of a Los Angeles Metro Blue Line train. He’s a former bus driver, but the differences between bus and rail are like night and day.

Accidents are commonplace, and deaths to motorists and pedestrians along the Blue Line are the highest among California’s light-rail systems.

Trains can reach speeds of up to 55 mph while buses are stalled in traffic. After the trains reach top speed, it takes them more than the length of a football field to stop. And, in the 54-minute, 22-mile run from downtown Los Angeles to Long Beach, Walden will cross 101 streets, breezing past senior citizen centers, shopping malls, low-income housing projects, parks, swap meets and industrial strips.

Virtually all of the deaths are the result of miscalculations or carelessness by pedestrians or motorists, transit police investigators say. Metropolitan Transportation Authority officials are providing system operators with training on how to be aware of such hazards, but point out that these dangers inherent in an urban system at ground level are often beyond their control.

Critics call the setup a formula for disaster, and the line’s track record bears them out.

47 Deaths in 10 Years

Since the Blue Line began operating in 1990, 47 pedestrians or motorists have lost their lives after being hit by the light-rail train, the result of more than 400 accidents, according to state and local records kept for light-rail systems.

On this day, Robert Johnson, who supervises the training of train operators, is hovering over Walden’s shoulder.

Peering down the track with Walden, it is easy to see the problem: Cars and trucks on both sides of the train head for the same intersection. Kids straddle bicycles, waiting impatiently for the train to pass. People push shopping carts toward the tracks. Commuters stand dangerously close to the tracks as they wait for Walden to stop.

“You see that car coming alongside? What do you think he is doing?” Johnson asks, reciting his training mantra. “Is he accelerating? What do you think he might be doing, trying to turn left?” The car stops. “If the vehicle starts to move an inch, you are on the horn, you are on the brake.”

Johnson, a hard-nosed, veteran train operator who looks out at the world from under an MTA baseball cap, pounds into his students’ heads what is obvious the first time they step into a Blue Line cab: The trains have no steering wheel.

Fixed as they are to rails, trains can’t turn away from an accident. That creates a helpless feeling for operators because if they see someone or something on the tracks ahead of them, all they can do is brake and wait for the impact, Johnson says.

Listen, in the spare language of a police report, to the Blue Line’s William McClendon, who in June was operating a train that struck and killed Troy Well Young, a pedestrian, at 103rd Street and Grandee Avenue in Watts.

“I was traveling 35 to 40 mph when I observed the man walking east along the south sidewalk area,” the 55-year-old train operator said. McClendon said he had been sounding his horn, but Young didn’t turn away. “I began emergency braking. He kept walking. He was looking south. There was nothing else I could do. I turned my head and heard the impact.”

Johnson hopes Walden will finish his career without an accident, but he is less than optimistic. Among other lessons, Walden will learn the phrase “pray for the dead,” a grim mnemonic reminder of the cadence that trainmen use for their warning sequence: two long horn blasts, followed by a short one, then another long one.

“It isn’t a matter of if you have an accident, it is when,” he says matter-of-factly.

So many accidents happen that the Blue Line has claimed more lives over the last five years than the state’s other four light-rail systems combined, according to Public Utilities Commission records. These statistics do not include heavy rail, such as MetroLink or Amtrak trains.

Nationally, the casualties are so high that Los Angeles accounts for a disproportionate share of America’s light-rail accidents, according to the Federal Transit Administration.

Officials seeking to improve the Blue Line’s safety record acknowledge that some problems are not fixable, such as the Blue Line’s location in Los Angeles County’s densely populated urban and industrial core. They say that taking the trains off the streets and creating a grade separation would dramatically help, but assert that there is no money available to elevate the tracks or put them below street level.

Working to Eliminate Casualties

Locked into what now is a mature, 10-year-old system that defies a massive overhaul, the MTA struggles to bring down Blue Line casualties with rigorous training of operators like Walden, aggressive law enforcement, and constant tinkering with fences, horn sounds, signal lights, traffic gates and other safety hardware.

Swing gates, which pedestrians have to pull back, rather than push forward, have been installed at some stations. The sound of the horn has been changed. So-called “T-signals,” which signal train operators, are being replaced because some motorists were confused and thought the T meant turn.

Trials are underway with street barrier gates that block all four lanes of traffic at intersections, rather than the conventional practice of two. More and more video systems are being added to intersections so that scofflaws can be photographed running red lights, tracked down and prosecuted.

MTA executives are also working with Union Pacific, which runs long freight trains parallel to the Blue Line tracks. Accidents are often caused by people trying to get around the freight trains, only to walk or drive into an oncoming Blue Line train.

The MTA has “gone well beyond” the safety requirements of regulatory agencies, said Lou Hubaud, a career MTA executive with responsibility for Blue Line safety. “This agency has gone way out there in reaching to the public to make it safer for them. We have done more than anyone in the country to make grade crossings safer.”

There is some evidence that the steps may be paying off.

In 1998, there were 10 fatalities involving Blue Line trains. This year, there have been four.

But critics say the MTA is not doing enough.

Even four deaths, they say, should be a red flag. During the five-year period from 1994 to the end of 1998, light-rail lines in Sacramento and Santa Clara County reported only two deaths between them to the PUC. Last year, San Francisco’s rail system, despite running more than twice the passenger miles as Los Angeles’ system, had three pedestrian and motor vehicle related deaths, according to commission records.

Similar differences exist nationally, although voluntary reporting to the Federal Transit Administration by cities such as Atlanta, Baltimore, St. Louis and Salt Lake City appears to be less exacting than that required by the PUC.

Critics believe that slowing down the trains and creating more grade separations, meaning raising the tracks above or burying them below street level, would help.

“You need to be looking at grade separations,” said Wendell Cox, a national transportation consultant who was a member of the Los Angeles County Transportation Commission from 1977 to 1985 when much of the planning for the Blue Line occurred. “It’s not fair to blame motorists. It’s a terrible cop-out to blame pedestrians or kids, to say they were at fault.”

“Speed equals danger,” said Tom Rubin, former risk management chief for the old Southern California Rapid Transit District, which was merged into the MTA.

“The basic problem is very simple: You don’t put a high-speed rail line through a very dense urban area, such as South-Central Los Angeles and Long Beach, unless you have it absolutely totally grade separated. By that I mean you don’t have crossing streets,” said Rubin, based in Oakland. “Total grade separation would eliminate 90% plus of fatalities and 100% of train-auto collisions.”

Money woes and system upheaval are huge barriers to the kind of massive capital works project that would be required to either bury or elevate the tracks.

Commuters now make 55,000 trips a day on the Blue Line. Because many of them are onetime bus riders who were switched to the trains, shutting down the train for any length of time would create serious problems because some of their old bus lines have been canceled.

Los Angeles County Supervisor Yvonne Brathwaite Burke, chairwoman of the MTA governing board, agrees with Cox and Rubin that grade separation would help. But she said money is a problem. She pointed to budget problems that brought a premature end to the county’s subway construction program.

“Obviously, if you have over-ground or below-ground rail you’d have fewer accidents,” she said. But, these days, she said, “Either you have no rail or you have it at grade.”

With no major improvements in sight, those who ride or live close to the Blue Line are struggling to cope, sometimes none too pleasantly.

“I heard a thump and then saw a man’s hat fly by the window and I said, ‘Oh, my God, I think we’ve hit someone,’ ” said a longtime Blue Line rider, recalling one experience. A resident of Long Beach, she works at a downtown Los Angeles bank and asked that her name not be used.

Experienced Blue Line riders say accident-caused delays have led them to develop taxicab pools with fellow commuters for shared rides home. They map out alternate bus routes. They know relatives who can pick them up if things get bad enough.

Despite the accidents, there are complaints that the MTA is too slow in moving commuters off stricken trains.

“They have accidents all the time,” said Compton resident Grace Flowers, who also works at a downtown Los Angeles bank. “I don’t blame the MTA, but they should have contingency plans. We can be stuck on this thing two, three hours.”

What seems to strike a personal chord with those familiar with the Blue Line is that many of those who lost their lives or were hit by the train were engaged in commonplace comings and goings.

They were rushing to catch a train. Or hurrying off a platform at the end of a trip, thinking about home. Or they were walking in a daze, perhaps with a little too much liquor in them. A 13-year-old boy lost his life running after a ball.

Masses are still said for Rosa Cebellos, a 66-year-old woman who was the Blue Line’s first fatality, at St. Lawrence Brindisi, a Roman Catholic church in Watts a block from the Blue Line tracks.

Cebellos was on her way to Mass, clutching a prayer book, when she was hit by a train.

Wajeha Bilal, a community activist who works out of a small office in the historic Watts train station at 103rd Street, gets so agitated that she often rushes out to the tracks and pulls people back because they are standing too close to the tracks.

Bilal, part of the Watts economic development effort, said she has been pleading for years with the MTA to have a crossing guard stationed at the intersection to hold back the human tide that surges down 103rd every day.

“We need a crossing guard here very bad. They said they had no budget for it,” said Bilal, standing a few feet from where Troy Young was hit last June.

As if to make her case, elementary-age children, just released from some of the four schools in the area, pour into the 103rd Street corridor.

“You kids, get off those tracks!” she shouts, seeing some of the children scampering along the tracks, playfully picking up stones from the roadbed or trying to balance themselves on the rails.

Danger on the Tracks

Metro Blue Line accidents consistently cause more injuries than California’s other light-rail systems.

Train accident deaths 1994-98
Los Angeles: 20
Sacramento: 1
San Diego: 11
San Francisco: 3*
Santa Clara: 1
* 1994-96 data not available

Train accidents per 100,000 miles
Los Angeles: 1.9
Sacramento: 1.5
San Diego: 1
San Francisco: 0.9
Santa Clara: 1.4

Blue Line Kills 13 Year Old Boy in South LA

13-Year-Old Boy Is Hit, Killed by Blue Line Train

Los Angeles Times
By Rich Connell and Caitlin Liu
July 17, 1999

A 13-year-old boy was killed Friday afternoon in South Los Angeles after he apparently hopped through a row of stopped freight cars and into the path of a Blue Line commuter train.

Gilberto Reynaga was struck by a southbound train at about 4:30 p.m. as he and a friend darted across the side-by-side rail tracks north of Slauson Avenue.

The boy, who had been playing basketball on one side of the tracks, was headed in the direction of his home on the other, witnesses said.

Police said the boys apparently jumped between the cars of a stopped Union Pacific freight train as warning signs sounded.

The boys looked one way when they came from the freight cars, witnesses said, but didn’t realize the commuter train was approaching from the other direction.

“Every day we fear that something like this could happen,” said Mabel Cail, who lives in the victim’s apartment complex next to the rail corridor near Long Beach Avenue. The neighborhood has large numbers of children, she said, who constantly crisscross the freight and passenger tracks. “It’s in a residential area … it would be much better if there [was] an overpass.”

Gilberto, an eighth-grader with several siblings, was described by relatives as an avid ballplayer.

“He loved basketball,” said his sister-in-law, Lillian Salazar. “He was happy, outgoing… . He was a sweet, sweet boy.”

“He was the baby,” said Gilberto’s older brother, Everado.

Passengers on the Blue Line train said they saw the victim’s friend dash away from the train.

“We saw him almost get hit. He was running. He seemed so scared,” said L.P. Tutankhamon, a retired designer from South Central Los Angeles. “We were laughing.”

But the feeling of relief turned to horror when the train made an emergency stop and they realized another child had been hit and dragged along the tracks.

Later, after the body had been removed, a black tennis shoe remained on the tracks. As one of Gilberto’s relatives went to pick it up, investigators told her it had to remain where it was.

Gilberto was the first child on foot killed by a Blue Line train, a Metropolitan Transportation Authority spokesman said.

Friday’s fatality was the second this year on the Blue Line. The first occurred less than a month ago when a man stepped in front of a train near the Watts station.

Forty-five people have been killed since service began between downtown Los Angeles and Long Beach in 1990, mostly motorists or pedestrians trying to go around barriers, said the MTA’s Gary Wosk.

Fatalities are down slightly this year, Wosk said, partly because of new warning signs and increased distribution of safety literature.

Blue Line trains had to be routed around the accident scene Friday, slowing the evening rush-hour commute for thousands of Blue Line riders.

Blue Line Hits Police Car & Injures 6

6 Injured as Blue Line Train Hits Police Car

Los Angeles Times
June 29, 1999

Six people, including an LAPD officer, suffered minor injuries Monday morning when a Blue Line train crashed into an unmarked police car, authorities said.

The crash occurred about 11 a.m. at 7th Street and Long Beach Boulevard, said Jana Blair of the Long Beach Police Department.

The train operator and four passengers complained of injuries and were examined at a hospital, said Ed Scannel of the Metropolitan Transportation Authority. The train was held up about an hour, Scannel said.

The Los Angeles police officer was on his way to pick up his partner for training at the LAPD’s Harbor Division, Blair said.

The northbound train was going about 25 mph, Blair said, and the officer indicated he did not see it. But the details of the accident are still unclear, she said.

Blue Line Kills Man at Watts Station

Blue Line Train Kills Pedestrian at Watts Station

Los Angeles Times
June 25, 1999

A pedestrian was killed by a southbound Blue Line train Thursday afternoon as it pulled into the 103rd Street Station in Watts.

The man was hit near 103rd Street and South Grandee Avenue about 2 p.m. and died at the scene, said Jim Wells, a spokesman for the city Fire Department.

The man, who was in his 30s, was not identified by authorities.

“According to witnesses, the gentleman appeared to be somewhat disoriented,” said Robert Calix of the Metropolitan Transportation Authority.

“He was told by others around the station that the train was approaching. Apparently, he didn’t hear it… . He stepped in front of the train and lost his life.”

Forty-two people have died in car and pedestrian collisions with Blue Line trains since the service began in 1990, including eight this year.

Blue Line Kills Woman in Willowbrook

Woman Walking on Tracks Killed by Train

Los Angeles Times
July 08, 1998

A 46-year-old woman was struck and killed by a Blue Line train Tuesday, the Metropolitan Transportation Authority said.

Sylvia Sayles of Los Angeles was walking on the tracks when she was hit by a train shortly before 8 a.m. at Willowbrook Avenue and Imperial Highway, said MTA spokesman Ed Scannell.

The gates were down and the red lights were flashing when she was hit by a southbound train, Scannell said.

County Fire Department paramedics pronounced Sayles dead from massive trauma, he said.

Forty-one people have been killed in car and pedestrian collisions with Blue Line trains since the service began July 1990, including seven fatalities this year, he said.

Man Killed by Blue Line Among 3 Killed on So Cal Tracks In the Same Day

Trains kill 3 pedestrians

The Fresno Bee
May 18, 1998

LOS ANGELES - Trains struck and killed three pedestrians within a 10-hour period in Fontana, Watts and Anaheim, authorities said Sunday.

In the first accident Saturday, a San Bernardino Metrolink commuter train struck and killed a woman who tried to cross in front of it.

In the second accident, a 30-year-old man was struck and killed by a southbound Metro Blue Line commuter train in Watts, said a Los Angeles city fire spokesman.

The third accident occurred about 9:30 p.m. when a transient was struck by a freight train on the Burlington Northern Santa Fe Railroad tracks in Anaheim. The man tried, but failed to jump out of the way of the train, authorities said.

Blue Line Kills Woman at Vernon Station

Blue Line Train Kills Woman

Los Angeles Times
By Susan Abram
May 08, 1998

A female pedestrian was struck and killed by a Blue Line commuter train in South Los Angeles on Thursday morning, just 12 hours after a tow truck and another MTA train collided in the area. One man died and 17 were injured in that crash.

The woman, whose name was being held pending notification of next of kin, was hit about 10:30 a.m. by a southbound train traveling about 25 mph as it was approaching the station near Vernon, said LAPD spokeswoman Carol Mitchell.

“She just darted out to go across the street” to try to beat the train, Mitchell said. “The gate was down and all the warning systems appeared to be functioning at that time.”

Later Thursday, the southbound Blue Line was shut down for about 45 minutes while sheriff’s deputies removed a pipe bomb found in an apartment building near the tracks in Long Beach.

Long Beach police said they discovered the device while investigating reports of a “foul odor” emanating from an apartment. Also found in the apartment were a rifle, ammunition, narcotics and drug paraphernalia, police said.

The occupant of the apartment, Michael Plechot, 36, of Long Beach, was detained for questioning, an officer said.

Meanwhile, MTA officials continued their investigation of the fatal crash Wednesday night when a Blue Line train hit a tow truck.

The tow truck driver, whose name was held pending notification of relatives, died early Thursday at Martin Luther King Jr./Drew Medical Center, a hospital representative said.

Two passengers in the tow truck were injured, along with 15 in the train.

The collision occurred about 10:30 p.m. Wednesday near East 115th Street and Wilmington Avenue, said Los Angeles Fire Department spokesman Brian Humphrey. A total of 30 city firefighters were sent to the scene, where Humphrey said the tow truck was “mangled.”

MTA spokesman Ed Scannell said the train was approaching a station at Imperial Highway and Wilmington Avenue.

The tow truck appeared to have crossed the tracks after making an illegal left turn on 114th Street, and headed in the wrong direction, Scannell said.

“That intersection is quite unusual because Wilmington crosses the track but not at a right angle,” Scannell said. “People approaching the tracks on those streets do not have access to the tracks,” he said, but there is a “big red sign that says ‘Do Not Enter.’ ”

Scannell said there have been 37 fatalities on the Blue Line tracks since 1990. MTA officials have cited about 5,000 people since 1995 for illegally crossing the tracks when the signals are displayed.

Blue Line Hits Tow Truck Kills 1 Injures 15

15 Hurt, 3 Critically, as Truck and Train Collide in Watts

Los Angeles Times
May 07, 1998

About 15 people were injured, three of them critically, when a Metro Blue Line train and a tow truck collided in Watts late Wednesday, authorities said.

The critically injured victims were the tow truck driver and two passengers, said Jim Wells, a spokesman for the city Fire Department. They were transported to local hospitals.

“The injuries to the passengers on the train appear to be minor in nature at this point,” Wells said.

The crash occurred about 10:30 p.m. near East 115th Street and Wilmington Avenue, he said.

The train was heading south when it collided with the truck, Metropolitan Transportation Authority spokesman Ed Scannell said. The left side of the truck was crushed.

About 10 ambulances responded to the accident site. The cause of the crash was under investigation.

The Metro Blue Line runs between downtown Los Angeles and Long Beach, carrying about 50,000 passengers a day.

(One of the critically injured reportedly died)

Blue Line at 5 mph Traps Compton Motorist in Wreckage

Driver Hospitalized in Crash With Train
Blue Line: Man is trapped in wreck for two hours after driving around crossing barriers

Los Angeles Times
By Doug Shuit
December 11, 1997

Rescuers worked for nearly two hours Wednesday to free a motorist trapped in the crumpled wreckage of his auto after it was hit by a Blue Line train as he tried to beat it through an intersection in Compton, authorities said.

The Los Angeles-bound commuter train was traveling at 5 mph when it struck a compact car driven by Ricardo Gonzalez, 25, of Lynwood, dragging the vehicle about 20 feet before stopping near a rail station at Compton Boulevard and Willowbrook Avenue. The auto came to rest wedged between the train and a train signal pole.

The wreckage was so tangled that Compton firefighters had to struggle for almost two hours to free Gonzalez after the 3:59 p.m. accident. He was immobile for a time, but could communicate with firefighters, who used hydraulic tools to cut him free.

Police said Gonzalez, who was taken to Martin Luther King Jr./Drew Medical Center, suffered fractured legs in the accident. One of the estimated 200 passengers aboard the Blue Line train was slightly injured.

Gonzalez was headed west on Compton when he drove around the crossing barriers and was hit by the commuter train, authorities said.

"This accident didn't need to occur," Compton Police Capt. Steven Roller said, noting that the warning lights at the intersection were in working order.

Jesse J. Diaz, a manager with the Metropolitan Transportation Authority, which operates the Blue Line, said: "Everybody has to understand that trains do not stop quickly, even at a slow rate of speed. Cars are no match for these trains."

An MTA spokeswoman said the situation was complicated by a Union Pacific freight train that was partially blocking the intersection at the time the Blue Line train approached. Several motorists grew impatient with the delay caused by the freight train and drove around the crossing barriers, MTA spokeswoman Marion MacKenzie said.

Gonzalez also tried to do this, but was hit by the commuter train, she said.

The accident not only snarled vehicular traffic in the area but also disrupted rail traffic, delaying Blue Line trains for several hours. MTA officials estimated that the train sustained $100,000 in damage.

Roller said Gonzalez could be cited for going into the intersection after the crossing barriers were lowered. A fine could range as high as $300.

Times staff writer George Ramos contributed to this story.

Blue Line Hits Two in Same Day

L.A. Train Accidents Injure 2

Sacramento Bee
July 11, 1995

STATE DIGEST

A pedestrian and motorist were injured in accidents involving Metro Blue Line commuter trains Monday, authorities said.

The pedestrian was identified only as a woman, about 60, who was in serious to critical condition after being struck by a Blue Line train, said Fire Department spokesman Jim Wells.

She was hospitalized at California Medical Center.

Earlier, a Blue Line train collided with a car that turned in front of it, police said.

The man was in critical but stable condition at County-USC Medical Center after surgery, said spokesman Harvey Kern.

Blue Line Kills Man in South LA

Blue Line Train Kills Pedestrian

Los Angeles Times
February 28, 1994

LOS ANGELES - A 53-year-old man was killed Sunday when he ignored a safety gate and flashing lights in South-Central Los Angeles and walked in front of a southbound Blue Line train at 55th Street and Long Beach Avenue, police said.

Samouem Long was pronounced dead at the scene of the accident, which occurred about 12:20 p.m. just north of the Slauson Avenue station. The gates, warning lights and bells at the crossing were operating properly, said Bill Heard, spokesman for the Metropolitan Transportation Authority.

Blue Line Kills 2 Year Old, 18 Year Old & Critically Injures 3 Children

2 Killed, 5 Hurt When Blue Line Train Hits Auto Accident
Crash claims lives of a young child and the driver, who apparently went around lowered crossing gates. Other victims are pried from wreckage.

Los Angeles Times
By Nieson Himmel & Jean Merl
November 17, 1993

Two people died and at least seven others were injured Tuesday night when a Blue Line train struck a car that apparently had driven around lowered crossing gates in Willowbrook, authorities said.

The crash occurred just before 9 p.m. near Willowbrook Avenue and 124th Street, a county Fire Department official said.

Killed were an 18-year-old woman, who was driving the car, and a child believed to be between 2 and 3. The five others in the car-three children and two adults-were critically injured. All had to be pried from the wreckage. The driver died at the scene and the child at a hospital, the California Highway Patrol said.

At least one person on the train complained of injuries, the CHP said. It could not be immediately determined whether they were serious.

Eyewitness Cesar Martinez said he heard the train "honk twice real loud. Then I saw this car wheeling around the gate, and the train hit it right in the middle. The car spun around.

"I rushed over and it looked like a massacre. I grabbed a child out of the car and a (deputy) handed me another."

Greg Davy, a spokesman for the Metropolitan Transportation Authority, which operates the Blue Line, said the northbound commuter train was traveling at 30 m.p.h. when the crash occurred. It rolled another 200 feet down the track before the operator could bring the 92,000-pound train to a stop.

Since it began operating in July, 1990, the Blue Line has been plagued with accidents, prompting authorities to step up security and to mount a campaign to keep vehicles from driving around crossing gates.

Tuesday night's collision raised the number of fatalities in Blue Line accidents to 16.

The previous fatal accident also was in Willowbrook. In May, two men in a stolen car drove onto the tracks in the path of an oncoming train and were killed.

Blue Line Accident in Willowbrook

2 Men in Stolen Car Die in Collision With Train

Los Angeles Times
Nieson Himmel
May 19, 1993

LOS ANGELES - Two men in a stolen car were killed and four passengers on a Blue Line train suffered minor injuries Tuesday when the car went past a lowered crossing gate and collided with the train in Willowbrook, officials said.

County fire officials said one man died at the scene and the second, who had to be extricated with emergency equipment, died at Martin Luther King Jr./Drew Medical Center. The engine of the northbound commuter train had to be lifted off the stolen blue car before the man could be removed.

"The car was dragged 300 feet after the impact," said Charlotte Kramer, supervising dispatcher for the Fire Department. "The chief at the scene told us the car had been stolen."

The dead men were said to be in their mid-20s; no further identification was available Tuesday night.

About 100 people were aboard the two-car train. Northbound Blue Line trains were delayed for half an hour, then resumed their 22-mile runs on the second track after the 7:30 p.m. crash at Stockwell Street and Willowbrook Avenue.

The injured passengers were treated at the medical center and released.

Since it began operating in July, 1990, the Blue Line has been plagued by accidents resulting from cars being driven around crossing barriers. As of January, the Metropolitan Transportation Authority had counted 148 Blue Line accidents, with 12 fatalities: nine motorists and three pedestrians.