The predictable happens again

This week, another death occured on the Hiawatha Light Rail line, this time a young man on a bicycle, near 46th. This is the 3rd death on the 7.5 mile line that cost $715 million. Such deaths will occur with regularity; they are an inherent aspect of an antiquated mode of transportation.

There is a great deal of difference between LRT and highway accidents. Big, heavy trains cannot swerve to avoid anything... they're bound to the tracks. They are very slow to stop, even from slow speeds. Worst of all, anything impacted by them, human or vehicle, is going to suffer big-time.

I foresaw such deaths in my article Death on the Boondoggle Express:

Remember when we used to have lots of trains? Remember how crossings used to be considered hazardous? There will be accidents and there will, undoubtedly, be deaths, but, in a time when we so often hear "zero tolerance" from government, these accidents and deaths will be acceptable, because it's a government function.

These and future deaths from the LRT will be forgotten, written off as simply accidents, probably the fault of the victims. They will be tolerated, even though the line itself is inherently dangerous. Can the family of the victims file suit against the line? Don't hold your breath... it's government.

When I was young and in Iowa, highways deaths were marked by a multitude of "X marks the spot" signs at the locations of the deaths. There were literally thousands of such signs, and some locations had many signs... a sobering warning about that location. Evidently, South Dakota still posts such signs, and has since the early 1980's. The sign says "X Marks the Spot. Think! Drive Safely." On the back, instead of the word "THINK", it says "WHY DIE?".


Wouldn't it be nice to have the avoidable LRT deaths commemorated in a similar way?