Viva La Cola!

Founded in January 2009, PubliCola is a blog about Seattle written by journalists who are dedicated to non-partisan, original daily reporting that prioritizes a balanced approach to news. Started by longtime local editor and award-winning reporter Josh Feit, PubliCola is the first online-only news site in state history to get media credentials to cover the state capitol.

PubliCola was off and running. In June 2009, PubliCola hired another award-winning journalist, super-sourced Seattle city hall reporter Erica C. Barnett.

People were afraid that blogging would change journalism. Instead, we believe journalism can change blogging. Twenty-first century journalism may look and feel different, and yes Erica isn't afraid to get cranky, but we're committed to making sure online news still delivers independent, reliable, even-keeled coverage. And most of all, we're committed to making sure the coverage sparks honest civic debate.

Bringing you cola for the people, PubliCola is named after Publius Valerius PubliCola, the alias for the authors of the Federalist Papers—the original bloggers.

x close
The first online-only news site in state history to get media credentials to cover the state capitol and Seattle city hall, PubliCola has been called a “must-read” by the Seattle Post Intelligencer and a hot “New Media Mover and Shaker” by Seattle Magazine—which also cited our own Erica C. Barnett as the city's No. 1 news nerd.

Seattle Times vs. Reality on Light Rail Danger

News   June 30, 2009 at 11:33 am Erica C. Barnett

The story: A driver runs a red light into the path of an oncoming train. His car is destroyed and he sustains minor injuries.

The Seattle Times’ version of the story: Sound Transit train “T-bones” car, injuring its driver, in “the third incident involving a test train in Rainier Valley” (a fact that’s mentioned twice in the brief story).

Not mentioned: The fact that the driver made an illegal left turn; the fact that he drove directly into the path of an oncoming train; and the fact that police gave him a ticket for running a red light. By omitting major facts about the collision, the Times makes it sound as if the train somehow jumped the tracks and attacked the car—a take that’s right in line with the Times’ ongoing series of alarmist stories and op/eds about the supposed danger of light rail trains.


  • swatter

    Between texting, watching for cars, bikes and peds in both directions, I don’t have the time to check for a train that comes a couple times a day.

  • swatter

    Between texting, watching for cars, bikes and peds in both directions, I don’t have the time to check for a train that comes a couple times a day.

  • Mikos

    How long was the train held up before it could continue on its way? That might be the real story here. Knucklehead drivers are a dime a dozen (see Swatter…). It’s not like you can steer the train to avoid them.

  • Mikos

    How long was the train held up before it could continue on its way? That might be the real story here. Knucklehead drivers are a dime a dozen (see Swatter…). It’s not like you can steer the train to avoid them.

  • Good Grief

    The car looks pretty beat up in the photo — hopefullly that will be one less PT Cruiser on the road.

    I am surprised that the study predicted about 2.6 incidents/month either with cars or peds — I don’t get how it is so hard to stay out of the way of the trains…

  • Good Grief

    The car looks pretty beat up in the photo — hopefullly that will be one less PT Cruiser on the road.

    I am surprised that the study predicted about 2.6 incidents/month either with cars or peds — I don’t get how it is so hard to stay out of the way of the trains…

  • Tacomacoma

    Despite the bull usually spewed by the Times about transit, is it the worst thing in the world to preach “LOOK THE F#*$K OUT FOR THE NEW TRAINS” to readers? Those trains are being heavily tested – by my count, at least two or three an hour per direction on a recent weekend. Three accidents in a few months’ worth of test runs — THREE — has got to be pretty good in a place where no such trains have ever existed before. Instead of putting this story out simply to raise hell among transit advocates, might this story serve the purpose to educate drivers to obey the damn crossing lights?!

  • Tacomacoma

    Despite the bull usually spewed by the Times about transit, is it the worst thing in the world to preach “LOOK THE F#*$K OUT FOR THE NEW TRAINS” to readers? Those trains are being heavily tested – by my count, at least two or three an hour per direction on a recent weekend. Three accidents in a few months’ worth of test runs — THREE — has got to be pretty good in a place where no such trains have ever existed before. Instead of putting this story out simply to raise hell among transit advocates, might this story serve the purpose to educate drivers to obey the damn crossing lights?!

  • Amy

    Maybe they’ve changed the article, but I only see that it’s the third accident mentioned once and they do mention that the driver turned against the red light.

  • Amy

    Maybe they’ve changed the article, but I only see that it’s the third accident mentioned once and they do mention that the driver turned against the red light.

  • Glenn Fleishman

    Article as I read in the print edition of the Seattle Times story said: left turn against the red light; a witness used the phrase T-boned.

  • Glenn Fleishman

    Article as I read in the print edition of the Seattle Times story said: left turn against the red light; a witness used the phrase T-boned.

  • Sarah

    I still can’t understand why trains–trains, which as another poster pointed out can’t attempt to avoid a stray car the way another car could try to do–are placed within reaching distance of vehicular traffic. Seems a little counterintuitive. But they’re now there, and that’s another thing about Seattle: when we actually do something (rare), it’s usually wrong.

  • Sarah

    I still can’t understand why trains–trains, which as another poster pointed out can’t attempt to avoid a stray car the way another car could try to do–are placed within reaching distance of vehicular traffic. Seems a little counterintuitive. But they’re now there, and that’s another thing about Seattle: when we actually do something (rare), it’s usually wrong.

  • Megan

    I’m just mad at the Times because it made me laugh outloud at an article about a pretty serious accident – who knew one of the three accidents involved a pedestrian who *ran into the side of the train*??

  • Megan

    I’m just mad at the Times because it made me laugh outloud at an article about a pretty serious accident – who knew one of the three accidents involved a pedestrian who *ran into the side of the train*??

  • Mikos

    Seriously folks. Boeing found that it had to adapt its technologies to the frailties of pilots if they wanted the planes to stay up in the air despite “pilot error.” It’s just bad engineering to think that the lousy driving habits we all see on the street are going to disappear because that’s what Sound Transit needs for light rail to be successful. After all, even cops with guns and the power to fine have only had so much impact on driving habits.

  • Mikos

    Seriously folks. Boeing found that it had to adapt its technologies to the frailties of pilots if they wanted the planes to stay up in the air despite “pilot error.” It’s just bad engineering to think that the lousy driving habits we all see on the street are going to disappear because that’s what Sound Transit needs for light rail to be successful. After all, even cops with guns and the power to fine have only had so much impact on driving habits.

  • http://seattletransitblog.com/ Ben Schiendelman

    Sarah: We put cars and trucks on the road together, and a semi can’t do much to avoid a red light runner either.

    This isn’t any different from car traffic, except that the people riding it are safer!

  • http://seattletransitblog.com Ben Schiendelman

    Sarah: We put cars and trucks on the road together, and a semi can’t do much to avoid a red light runner either.

    This isn’t any different from car traffic, except that the people riding it are safer!

  • http://seattletransitblog.com/ Ben Schiendelman

    Mikos:

    Accidents drop dramatically in the first few years after a new system opens. It just takes time for drivers to get used to behaving differently around the train. In fact, speaking of engineering, Sound Transit’s system is more safely built than previously constructed at-grade light rail systems in the US. It’s more separated, has better signage, etc.

    Driving habits change, but they don’t change in a month, they change over a year. The accident rate post-light-rail will be lower than the accident rate pre-light-rail anyway, because a lot of former car users will be taking the train, reducing the accident rate.

  • http://seattletransitblog.com Ben Schiendelman

    Mikos:

    Accidents drop dramatically in the first few years after a new system opens. It just takes time for drivers to get used to behaving differently around the train. In fact, speaking of engineering, Sound Transit’s system is more safely built than previously constructed at-grade light rail systems in the US. It’s more separated, has better signage, etc.

    Driving habits change, but they don’t change in a month, they change over a year. The accident rate post-light-rail will be lower than the accident rate pre-light-rail anyway, because a lot of former car users will be taking the train, reducing the accident rate.