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SLU Streetcar Jumps the Tracks

Politics   March 7, 2011 at 11:35 am Erica C. Barnett

Just a few minutes ago, the South Lake Union streetcar pulled out of the stop at Westlake, drove swiftly onto the opposite track on the left side of the street (heading into traffic), jumped the tracks, and dragged along the street for a while before coming to a stop in the middle of the intersection.

Fortunately, according to our source, there were only “about three people on board,” and the driver let them all off after he came to a stop.

UPDATE: King County Metro spokeswoman Linda Thielke says the derailment was caused by a switching malfunction, which made the northbound train switch over to the southbound tracks (and into oncoming traffic) before it came to a stop. Thielke says a “re-railing crew” was headed to the scene; she didn’t know when the streetcar would be back in service.


  • http://twitter.com/cbruce Cameron Bruce

    In other, unrelated news, Kemper Freeman was seen buying a large box of ball bearings.

  • Grover

    The S.L.U.T. loses its groove.

  • sarah

    How much is the City contributing to this thing each year?

  • Jojo

    but how will i get to my yacht from downtown?!

  • Grover

    How are the yuppies who work in SLU going to get to lunch at Westlake Center today? It’s like, at least a mile!

  • LOL

    Yuppies = people who contribute to the economy. Perhaps that’s what makes them so alien to you?

  • BlueCollarEnviro

    Oh, don’t be such a sore loser. Paul Allen bought the city council fair and square.

  • Pro SLUT

    Streetcar is pretty inexpensive to build and operate and most of the funding comes from a Local Improvement District. Businesses in proximity of the line pay a big chunk of the cost.

  • Pro SLUT

    Anti Paul Allen jokes are soooooo last decade!

  • Bill B in the Central District

    that’s right. nothing to see here. just move along….

  • slower than a bus

    baloney. the city threw in tens of millions of dollars and this provides no more mobility than if you took a bus and painted it with the word “TROLLEY.”

    3 people riding it. It’s not inexpensive to throw away tens of millions for steel rails when they provide no rapid transit benefit they are a waste.

  • slower than a bus

    baloney. the city threw in tens of millions of dollars and this provides no more mobility than if you took a bus and painted it with the word “TROLLEY.”

    3 people riding it. It’s not inexpensive to throw away tens of millions for steel rails when they provide no rapid transit benefit they are a waste.

  • Dave

    You mean to help turn SLU into a vibrant place to visit and work, creating thousands of good paying jobs, in the city?

    I know, I know, the streets aren’t littered with bums and spray paint….but do they ever won out vs. good paying jobs that help the tax base?

  • Dave

    You mean to help turn SLU into a vibrant place to visit and work, creating thousands of good paying jobs, in the city?

    I know, I know, the streets aren’t littered with bums and spray paint….but do they ever won out vs. good paying jobs that help the tax base?

  • Grover

    What makes them alien to me is that they “need” a $50 million streetcar to travel one mile.

    Or, maybe the S.L.U.T. was not necessary?

  • Grover

    What makes them alien to me is that they “need” a $50 million streetcar to travel one mile.

    Or, maybe the S.L.U.T. was not necessary?

  • handle

    Streetcars cost about $50 million a mile. The SLUT was paid about 1/2 by the property owners with Vulcan making up about half the money and votes.

    The trick here is operating costs, which the businesses pay none of the $3,000,000 per year.

    According to SDOT a brand new electric bus line would cost about $7 million per mile including new pavement and wires and the cost of running is half that of a streetcar.

  • BlueCollarEnviro

    But his council lackeys stick around. And so does the Experience Ugly Architecture Project, squatting on public land.

  • BlueCollarEnviro

    What amazes me is how the SLUT careened into possible oncoming traffic. Why is traffic allowed to share the track space at all?

  • BlueCollarEnviro

    What do you think the deep-bore tunnel is for?

  • Anonymous

    What is built is only a portion of the ultimate plan for that line. The planned (unfunded) extension for it to extend north to connect to the future Brooklyn Link station in the U-district. It is also supposed to extend west to 1st Avenue, to tie into a potential 1st Avenue Street Car.

    All the “yuppie” talk is rather dated, isn’t it? What is this, the 80′s?

  • Grover

    If you notice, the trolley is not in its “track space.” It jumped the tracks. In other words, it is out of its lane.

  • http://twitter.com/kerrysummers Kerry Summers

    Exactly, it’s supposed to be on the east tracks, not the west tracks.

  • YeaSayer

    Well it’s back on the tracks and was driven out of the middle of 6th. Westlake SB between Virginia & 6th is still closed.

  • YeaSayer

    Alright it went back into the South stop at 5th & Olive and then went North back through the place where it jumped track successfully. Said “Out of Service” wonder if it’s done running for the day?

  • YeaSayer

    Alright it went back into the South stop at 5th & Olive and then went North back through the place where it jumped track successfully. Said “Out of Service” wonder if it’s done running for the day?

  • Anc
  • Anc
  • Anc
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  • Grover

    Trolleys are rather dated, aren’t they? What is this, the 1800′s?

  • http://twitter.com/r343l Rachael Ludwick

    If trolleys are dated, then why are cities like Zurich and Toronto expanding and upgrading their trolley systems? Those are only two cities I’ve visited with obvious use and expansion of trolleys. I imagine there are others that use trolleys as part of an integrated multi-modal transit system.

  • handle

    Rach – it would appear that Toronto is not expanding streetcars but rather moving some to their own ROW and building subways.

    Route 512 St. Clair was rebuilt to have a separated right-of-way similar to that of the route 510 on Spadina Avenue, to increase service reliability and was completed on June 30, 2010.
    On March 16, 2007, Toronto Mayor David Miller and the TTC announced Transit City, a major proposal for a 120-kilometre, $6.1-billion network of new European-style tramlines (LRTs) that would provide rail transit to underserved suburban areas of the city. As of July 2008, environmental assessments are underway for trams on Sheppard Avenue East and Don Mills Road, and for the harbourfront route, including an extension of the route from Exhibition Place to Queen Street West at Roncesvalles Avenue.
    Since the election of Rob Ford as mayor of Toronto in 2010, the expansion of the streetcar system appears highly threatened as the new mayor plans to scrap Transit City in favour of constructing an expansion to the Sheppard subway line.[7]    .

  • Anonymous

    Nice quip! But… Its one thing to use a stale, derisive label such as “yuppie”, and another to talk about a mode of transportation. I suppose “walking” is dated as well, no?

    One other point. Since you threw around the $50 million cost of the initial segment. That cost included a maintanence facility, power supply infrastructure and three street car trolleys. Extending the line would not be nearly as burdened by these costs (though trolleys would be added as demand grows…).

  • sarah

    The 3 people got where they wanted to go so it didn’t need to run anymore.

  • Grover

    Nothing stale about “yuppie.” It’s still a great, derisive label.

  • Rower

    I don’t use this particular piece of infrastructure so it must have no utility whatsoever.

  • system, speed, synergy

    sigh….zurich or another euro city expanding street car lines is one thing, they ALREADY have tons of tracks and cars. For us to build it from scratch is totally different as we don’t. So the apples to apples is “would Zurich build a huge netework today if it didn’t have one to start with?”

    Now, if your trolleys are super long and carry more people than a bus, sure, there are advantages. But let’s be honest about costs and benefits. For seattle to start putting in tracks at fifty million a freaking mile while we are cutting busses makes no sense. ANd, what we “already have” is the electric bus network….building on what we already have makes sense. but all of this is sort of besides the point because what we need is RAPID transit not more SLOW transit and for that you build above or below ground and costs are way higher so throwing away fifty million a mile on surface trolleys is just stupid as it takes away from the ability to spend 200 million a mile or 250 WHATever for a real elevated line or a real cut and cover line (400 million, WHATever) ( a 400 million a mile cut and cover line with nice long 4 or 6 car trains is wise; good benefit to cost ratio; a fifty million a mile slow trolley moving no one any faster than a bus is not wise).

    There’s a numerator and a denominator. complex, isn’t it? There’s a synergy with what you already got — or lack of synergy. Several factors. What’s clear is just throwing money around willey nilly instead of planning an entire system is a good way to get reelected than after 8 more years our transit sucks just as much as it did 8 years ago. The seattle way, yes, I know. More important to think you’re building transit that works, than to actually do it.

  • JennaWa

    But streetcars are cool! And its pretty clear that development responds to the certainity provided by throwing that infrastructure into the street. Light rail, streetcar, etc. have a big value as placemaking and community development tools.

  • Angry Over it Guy

    streetCars, why? Damn SLU yuppies! This place is O-V-E-R.
    (The dream of the 80′s in alive on Publicola!)