I got a little nervous today, reminded of this war on terror. I got stranded in the subway on the blue line between Clinton and Jackson. The train stopped and the power went out. We sat in the dark in the tunnel for 25 minutes listening to the sirens above. I could not get a signal on the cellphone. We didn't know what was going on but we knew something was wrong. They eventually told us to evacuate the train, which was creepy. :eek: I walked north and saw alot of fire trucks at Washington.

I just heard on the news the train hit a woman at Washington.

Steve

I just heard on the news the train hit a woman at Washington.
At Washington, aren't the only two ways one could be hit by a train is to stand too close to the train as it passes or actually be down in the track area (unlikely unless the person is a loon)? It's not like there is a crossing at the Washington stop.

At Washington, aren't the only two ways one could be hit by a train is to stand too close to the train as it passes or actually be down in the track area (unlikely unless the person is a loon)? It's not like there is a crossing at the Washington stop.

Apparently each year there are a fair number of cases worldwide of people who choose to commit suicide this way...

At Washington, aren't the only two ways one could be hit by a train is to stand too close to the train as it passes or actually be down in the track area (unlikely unless the person is a loon)? It's not like there is a crossing at the Washington stop.

Right, you have to be on the tracks. She had to fall, get pushed, or jump.

Steve

I read in the Sun Times yesterday that the woman, age 57, tried to commit suicide but failed, landed between the tracks, and only received minor injuries.

Steve

I got a little nervous today, reminded of this war on terror. I got stranded in the subway on the blue line between Clinton and Jackson. The train stopped and the power went out. We sat in the dark in the tunnel for 25 minutes listening to the sirens above. I could not get a signal on the cellphone. We didn't know what was going on but we knew something was wrong. They eventually told us to evacuate the train, which was creepy. :eek: I walked north and saw alot of fire trucks at Washington.

Sorry to hear you were delayed... they should've either gotten the trains moving sooner or evacuated you sooner.
I just heard on the news the train hit a woman at Washington.
This is probably the worst way to commit suicide... now we don't know if this was a suicide...if it wasn't ignore the rest


but if it was she not only affected herself but also the train operator and she delayed a whole bunch of passengers. The train operators have a hard time getting back to work after this. This may seem very rude and inconsiderate, but...... at she won't do it again.

NOTE TO ALL: IF YOU EVER HAVE A PROBLEM WITH YOUR LIFE, TALK TO SOMEONE, DON'T MAKE OTHERS' LIVES WORSE BY JUMPING UNDER THE TRAIN!

Assuming this is suicide, there seem to be better ways to go. My sentiment... if you pull it off, please make sure you don't inconvenience me on the way.

Assuming this is suicide, there seem to be better ways to go. My sentiment... if you pull it off, please make sure you don't inconvenience me on the way.

If it were I, it would be in my car, parked a few blocks from the county medical examiner -- window blinds up so no one has to be freaked out. Mail a letter to the M.E. indicating where to find my body. Then, a heaping dose of sodium cyanide (preceded by some recreational drugs, perhaps).

Of course, I'm thinking rationally about how I'd do it (don't worry -- I wouldn't). Most of these cases are people who are not thinking rationally.

Sounds rude by our standards, but apparently in Japan any intentional delay of train service is criminal -- so jump-in-front-of-the-subway suicides result in substantial fines, regardless of whether or not it's "successful."

In any case, those huge freight trains are far heavier than our "L" trains, which are engineered to be light enough to bounce atop the tracks. (Indeed, they're lighter than most "light rail" trains.) Anyone who's watched the sparks fly should know which one is the third rail.

Train driver should have said something IMHO.

I was on a brown line train last July I think and it just stopped for a good 45 minutes between Southport and Belmont where the Ravenswood and red/purple line tracks merge. The train driver eventually did get on the PA and tell us that someone had gotten hit by a train further north on the brown line. Sucks that it happened when we were where we were because the power source changes right there before Belmont from a north side substation to the Belmont substation. Would have been able to transfer to the red line and take the subway to work.

On Metra, they announce that there is a "police action" causing the delay. Last time it happened on a train I was on, we were fortunately still at the downtown station, because they were estimating 2 1/2 hours to document the scene and clean things up (it was train vs. car with bad driver, not train vs. mentally ill person).

Here in the SF Bay Area, there seem to be a few suicides each month in front of BART, Amtrak, or Caltrain (the State Office of Emergency Services usually notices them as "train vs. trespasser." It seems like a rough thing to do to the engineers/drivers. Similar to Metra, BART will usually announce it with words that could indicate a medical emergency by a passenger on a train (and sometimes they do mean that), but as often do not.

Of course out here we've got the bridges, too...and Caltrain, like Metra, continues to long stretches of at-grade line.

Perhaps this is a bit over-analytical, but I do wonder the attraction of trains as compared to, say, freeway overpasses. Maybe a train seems more certain?

-Hayden

Sadly this is a very common cause of metro delays in Paris. It is awful for the conductors and as in Japan there is a "law" against it (never enforced).

Yes, delays are inconvenient but perhaps you could take this time to try not to be as self-centred...

The train operators have a hard time getting back to work after this. This may seem very rude and inconsiderate, but...... at she won't do it again.Good thing you brought that up. The train engineer generally gets overlooked in discussions and press coverage of these cases, but fortunately the railroad companies have learned, and I think most of them immediately provide counselling. It can be very hard on the engineers, since they see the person and know it's about to happen, but are helpless to stop the train and prevent it (and they sure can't steer around the person!).

BTW, I like one thing about the subject header for this thread: the "el subway". That would be an oxymoron in almost any other city except ours. :)

Good thing you brought that up. The train engineer generally gets overlooked in discussions and press coverage of these cases, but fortunately the railroad companies have learned, and I think most of them immediately provide counselling. It can be very hard on the engineers, since they see the person and know it's about to happen, but are helpless to stop the train and prevent it (and they sure can't steer around the person!).

BTW, I like one thing about the subject header for this thread: the "el subway". That would be an oxymoron in almost any other city except ours. :)

Good point about the title. Whoever heard of an "elevated" subway?

I saw a guy get electrocuted in the 80s by stepping on the third rail on the Howard Line (now the red line). He was trying to skip fare by climbing a hill, crossing the tracks, and getting on the platform. Similarly, they cut the power, we all deboarded, and I walked home. I felt very strange because I just saw someone die. (His head was smoking!) Fare was only 90 cents back then and I couldn't believe the guy killed himself trying to save less than a buck!

It didn't even make the paper.

Steve

Good thing you brought that up. The train engineer generally gets overlooked in discussions and press coverage of these cases, but fortunately the railroad companies have learned, and I think most of them immediately provide counselling. It can be very hard on the engineers, since they see the person and know it's about to happen, but are helpless to stop the train and prevent it (and they sure can't steer around the person!)My dad had a guy dressed in black jump in front of his car at 5am as he was driving to work. He swerved and missed him and sped away, then called the police station and warned them. The cops told him to stay where he was, but after 15 minutes they didn't show (and this is in a suburb where the cops would be in front of our house before we hung up the phone with the non-emergency number if something was odd).

He drove back, and sure enough, the guy jumped in front of another car and got his wish. The driver was SO happy to see my father, because he was able to corrobarate the story.

My dad still curses that guy out every once in a while if he's driving at night, and he's been moved from that area for nearly ten years.

My dad had a guy dressed in black jump in front of his car at 5am as he was driving to work.
I'm curious, what road?

I'm curious, what road?
Glenview Road in Wilmette, just west of the split from Wilmette Avenue. Minimal streetlights on that section of road, no homes facing the road. At that time of the morning, it would take less than two minutes tops to dispatch a squad car from half the town, and it still wasn't enough.

Another incidcent at 59th. Seems to be an epidemic.

http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/local/chi-060527disturbed-man,1,7485043.story?coll=chi-news-hed

Power was shut off for nearly three hours on part of the CTA's Green Line, and inbound Dan Ryan traffic at 59th Street was rerouted Saturday afternoon after a man threatened to kill himself at two Chicago Transit Authority stations, authorities said.

Steve

inbound Dan Ryan traffic at 59th Street was rerouted Saturday afternoon after a man threatened to kill himself at two Chicago Transit Authority stations, authorities said.So Dan Ryan traffic actually can get worse than it's been the past month? The entire South Side must have been gridlocked. Combined with problems of various memorial day weekend traffic...

I am confused by the logistics of someone threatening to kill himself at two different stations? What, shoot himself at the first one then hurry over a mile to the next one and hang himself there?

I keep waiting for the CTA to install the cell phone service in the subways that was talked about a few years ago. Most other cities--SFO, DC, Montreal to name a few--have service underground. Anyone have a status?