Phoenix opened its $1.4 billion light-rail line for business on Saturday, December, 27. Thousands of people lined up to ride it during the first four days, when it was free.
Flickr photo by Phxwebguy.
Some riders were treated to a little extra excitement when light-rail trains were involved in several collisions with automobiles. The first accident took place on December 2, when Phoenix Metro was testing the system. The second collision happened on the day after it opened to the public. The car’s driver, apparently an illegal alien, fled the scene on foot.
But it was the third collision, less than a week later, that raised the most eyebrows. A pickup truck had stopped at a light-rail crossing for a train to go by. After the train passed, the crossing gates lifted, the light turned green, and the pickup tried to cross — only to be hit by a train going in the other direction. Apparently Metro still has to get the bugs out of its crossing gates.
