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RSS icon Comments on SLUT Rams SUV

1

Good reason not to put transit at grade.

Posted by dave | December 19, 2007 9:29 AM
2

How the hell did that happen? I walk faster than that fucker. Would I do damage to a car if I walked into it? Holy shit. That would rule.

Posted by Mr. Poe | December 19, 2007 9:31 AM
3

Hmmm ....so now we have learned SLUT collides with vehicles. ....And the bikers don't like crossing the tracks....maybe it will hit a pedestrian next or could it even get stuck in lights and traffic???

It makes you think ....aha!!
What about transit that __isn't__ in the roadway surface.....??

Let's study this for 5 yrs. to make sure everybody gets heard.

Posted by Deep Thinker | December 19, 2007 9:33 AM
4

That SLUT joke was never really funny "haha" but funny "oh silly" and now it's just run its course completely.

Who ever started the "I can walk faster than the street car meme?"

This woman tried to run and couldn't do it:
http://www.seattleweekly.com/news/blogs/dailyweekly/2007/12/racing_the_slut.php

Your lazy ass can't either.

Posted by Andrew | December 19, 2007 9:34 AM
5

Or the SUV driver could put down the breakfast burrito and not run a red? Maybe?

Posted by Will/HA | December 19, 2007 9:35 AM
6

I kinda like this. The SLUT is running amok.

Posted by heywhatsit | December 19, 2007 9:37 AM
7

How often will this happen? And how often will it happen to light rail when it runs through Rainier Valley?

Posted by Christian | December 19, 2007 9:38 AM
8

boys, boys - read the story: the driver of the suv (saudi underwriting vehicle) ran a red light - a growing phenomenon in this burg. it's gotten to the point at busy intersections that when my light turns green i count "one" "two" and pull out. too many times i'd have been flattened from an asshole 90 degrees to my left or right, if i hadn't. hurrah for the slut; take-down on one more shitty driver who just can't get where (s)he going quite fast enough.

Posted by misrule | December 19, 2007 9:39 AM
9

@4

That woman should join the Special Olympics.

Posted by Mr. Poe | December 19, 2007 9:39 AM
10

Light rail hitting cars...cars raming into light rail.

This happens in EVERY SINGLE CITY I have ever at the introduction of street car / light rail systems

I am actually shocked it took an entire week for this to happen,

Posted by Mrs. Y | December 19, 2007 9:44 AM
11

@7: It won't. Unlike the SLUT, Sound Transit's rails are in the median, not the right-hand lane.

Posted by Greg | December 19, 2007 9:48 AM
12

So, how long until they break out the "I got rammed by the SLUT" t-shirts?

Posted by Hernandez | December 19, 2007 9:50 AM
13

I've heard that there's a strong possibility of random electrocution from the tracks, as well.

Posted by NapoleonXIV | December 19, 2007 9:57 AM
14

Will Eli Sanders blame the terrorist cyclists?

Posted by Doug Nellis | December 19, 2007 9:59 AM
15

Women and SUV's don't mix.

Posted by sad but true | December 19, 2007 10:02 AM
16

I would like to apologize to all the Sound Transit people, on behalf of myself and others, for predicting that ST LINK would do this way before the streetcar did.

I was wrong.

My bad.

How about "My other car was rammed by the SLUT" bumper stickers? You can make one for bikes too - "My other bike was crushed by the SLUT" - but it would work better as a rain jacket.

Posted by Will in Seattle | December 19, 2007 10:03 AM
17

@8, amen. I do the same thing. I walk through downtown on my way home every night and am amazed that pedestrians aren't getting flattened right and left. Even more appalling is growing number of drivers who barrel through red lights and then give you a dirty look as they almost run you down in the crosswalk, because god forbid you get in their way.

And to all those who say they walk faster than the streetcar... Yesterday I took it from Fred Hutch to Westlake in ten minutes flat, both ways. Unless you are an Olympic race walker, you are lying.

Posted by I (heart) the streetcar | December 19, 2007 10:07 AM
18

No passengers were aboard the streetcar...

Typical Seattle. We spend $50M on public transportation so we can feel all morally superior and environmentalist and left-wing, but then none of us ride it because it is too proleterian, inefficient, and un-hip.

Posted by David Wright | December 19, 2007 10:15 AM
19

At first, I was skeptical about the idea of rail transit at grade. But after this, I think ALL rail transit should be at grade. If those trains can carry passengers AND wipe out some entitled cell-phone-yakking-red-light-running douche's Escalade at the rate of once per week, think of the progress!

Posted by Joe M | December 19, 2007 10:16 AM
20

@12:

Shouldn't those say, "I Got Pegged By The SLUT" instead?

Posted by COMTE | December 19, 2007 10:17 AM
21

They need the old fashioned cast iron cow-catchers on front, so as to automatically sweep the wreckage from the tracks.

Posted by NapoleonXIV | December 19, 2007 10:17 AM
22

Uh, @18, more than 32,000 people rode the streetcar in the first six days. That is why beyond predicted.

Posted by Smarter than you | December 19, 2007 10:25 AM
23

I had this discussion with a friend while walking through Amsterdam last Spring. Crossing any given street you have to dodge bikes in the bike lane, the tram, busses, cars and other pedestrians. You know what the key is? You have to actually participate in society. You have to be aware of your surroundings, and accept the fact that everything you encounter is not there for your individual comfort of benefit. It's not everyone else's responsibility that you get where you're going as fast and safe as possible. Simply watch out for the things around you and if you can't do that you're going to get hit, or run your tire into the rut, or blow a red light into the train. And it's your own damn fault.

Posted by C | December 19, 2007 10:27 AM
24

Women and driving don't mix. Period. Get on bikes, girls.

Posted by VOICE OF REASON | December 19, 2007 10:28 AM
25

Just do the same thing we did in New Orleans; if you get into an accident with the streetcar is it ALWAYS your fault. 50 tons of steel that can't turn, can't brake without sliding 10 feet... if you get in it's way, well that's simply too bad. The streetcar has the right-of-way no matter what.

It just takes a bit for everyone to learn this the hard way.

Posted by Colton | December 19, 2007 10:30 AM
26

@18 - It's not about being hip, it's a matter of the hour. I walk by the streetcar tracks on my way to work every morning (in fact, I must have just missed seeing this accident by a matter of minutes) and it's a rare morning when I see anyone at all in that part of the neighborhood just because of the hour.

Contrast this with taking the trolley downtown after work yesterday when the thing was pretty crowded.

Posted by Chris B | December 19, 2007 10:38 AM
27

Am I the only one who thinks it's funny that the SLUT was EMPTY at 7:30am?

Posted by monkey | December 19, 2007 10:42 AM
28

@27, you are right on about that!

But this would not have happened if we built the monorail instead. Just saying.

Posted by Just Me | December 19, 2007 10:45 AM
29

It's cute that two commenters assume that the driver was a woman, especially when the article doesn't mention the driver's gender.

Besides it's Seattlites who have no business driving any vehicle, let alone an SUV.


And on that note, is it just me or are SUV drivers particularly stupid? I have two theories: 1. SUV drivers assume that their cars are safe, consequently, they turn into shitheads upon the purchase of their civilian tanks. 2. SUV drivers have always been shitty drivers. That's why they purchased an SUV -- to keep themselves safe from their own shitty driving.

Posted by keshmeshi | December 19, 2007 10:51 AM
30

Why do these things run better in other cities but here it's just basiclly a fancy vacant bus on tracks that runs into SUVs?

Posted by pozi | December 19, 2007 10:55 AM
31

Buses and cars collide all the time. This is a non-story.

Posted by Patrick McGrath | December 19, 2007 10:55 AM
32

I love this! Natural selection at its best. I wish that when the papers reported this stuff they listed the hometown of the driver. I'm thinking Kirkland or Mill Creek for this brain surgeon. It's a FUCKING TRAIN PEOPLE!

COMTE

You have the best t-shirt idea. Kudos

Posted by wisepunk | December 19, 2007 10:58 AM
33

@4: No, the joke is still funny. Also, the very fact that someone actually attempted to race the streetcar -- and lost by just a bit, at mid-morning -- should make us stop and think a bit before building another of these damn things.

@22: Sure, lots of people have ridden the SLUT already. But judging from my observations from the (much, much faster) Metro route 17, they're predominantly families with small children, not commuters. And how many people will ride it once it's no longer free?

For that matter, if it's this slow now, how much slower will it be once the fare element is added?

The streetcar is a neat idea in theory, but I can't think of a single admirable thing about this one. Possibly the biggest waste of money since the new library, although at least that doubles as a homeless shelter.

Posted by joykiller | December 19, 2007 11:00 AM
34

28,
Yeah if we had built the monorail, our city would have had so little money to spend on anything other than that bankrupt, 1950s idea that not only could we not have built a streetcar, we'd be closing other services down.

And the thing still would never had run.

Posted by Andrew | December 19, 2007 11:05 AM
35

I bet chad johnson could beat it.

Posted by Bellevue Ave | December 19, 2007 11:09 AM
36

@33,

The 17 may be faster, but it's always painfully late. I used to catch it at Nickerson and it was never less than 15 minutes late, and the route starts in Ballard. So, if you don't mind waiting an extra 15 minutes or more for the bus, by all means, take the 17.

Posted by keshmeshi | December 19, 2007 11:18 AM
37

@36: Yes, and as we know, at-grade trolleys are never late. Except, you know, when they hit SUVs, when people stick ball bearings in the track, and so on. I actually went down to see the SLUT last week on my way back to Ballard -- it was 10 minutes late, the 17 was five minutes late, and I ended up just catching the 17 instead.

(Disclaimer: I usually ride it outbound, which isn't subject to the same bridge problems the inbound 17 is.)

But see, the other nice things about the 17, in addition to be faster than the SLUT: a.) it takes me farther than 1.3 miles and b.) it didn't cost $50 million.

I don't mean to praise Metro bus routes as the paragon of an enjoyable and easy-to-use experience. What I'm saying is the same thing #30 said: the SLUT is a slow, fancy, vacant bus with a special track. AND its route duplicates much of a pre-existing bus route.

Posted by joykiller | December 19, 2007 11:36 AM
38

once its extended up eastlake to the UW, all y'all will stop bitching & laud the foresight.

people around here have to STOP RUNNING REDS. it's constant.

Posted by max solomon | December 19, 2007 11:53 AM
39

jesus. if we're going to make fucking SLUT jokes, can they be more creative? all the jokes in this post and thread have been RETARDED.

Here's one: THAT SUV TOTALLY GOT PEGGED BY THE SLUT

See? Much better mental imagery w/ that pun. Make it work, people.

Posted by GIVE ME A BREAK, PEOPLE | December 19, 2007 11:56 AM
40

"Uh, @18, more than 32,000 people rode the streetcar in the first six days. That is why beyond predicted."

That's how many people tried it, for free during the Christmas/tourist season. In short that number (and the prediction) means nothing. Ridership numbers a few months down the road will be interesting.

Posted by K X One | December 19, 2007 12:04 PM
41

Keshmeshi @29, SUV drivers are a little more cut off from reality than other drivers. But the truth is, SUVs are just plain harder to drive. That's one reason why, despite their massive armor, they're NOT safer than cars; they're more dangerous. People think "I will survive a crash in that" but they don't seem to realize that you are much more likely to get INTO a crash in an SUV -- much less maneuverable, much worse braking -- and it doesn't even out -- it gets worse. So, especially with the stereotype of the 90-pound blonde in the Escalade, you've got someone trying to muscle around in a vehicle that's more than they can handle. If everybody drove a small car, we'd all be safer -- and we could ditch Saudi oil, too.

Posted by Fnarf | December 19, 2007 12:07 PM
42

King 5 News:
"The driver of the SUV swerved to avoid a puddle"

A PUDDLE?! You are driving an SUV and you swerved to avoid a PUDDLE?!

Idiot can't even use an off-road two ton killing machine right.


Posted by K X One | December 19, 2007 12:08 PM
43

Yeah, how about that SLUT. Man, the ridership is amazing, I saw four, count them "four" whole people on the orange SLUT this morning going to Fred Hutch. I wonder how many people will be riding when you actually have to pay to ride.

Posted by wile_e_quixote | December 19, 2007 12:39 PM
44

The 17 has been (knocks on wood) ON TIME for at least a month in the morning off Nickerson. I know. Shocking.

Now they just need to add another 17 between 8 and 9am on weekdays, and I'd be happy. The standing room only 8:30am 17 bus really fucking sucks. I mean, I've seen people fight on that particular bus just because of how crowded it is.

Posted by mackro mackro | December 19, 2007 1:27 PM
45

Ah, the 17. I used to take it at around 7:30 because they had a bus that started its route at Nickerson and 15th instead of Loyal Heights so it always had lots of room. The cute teenage girl who used to ride it was a bonus.

I'm so glad I missed out on the whole construction mess with the Fremont Bridge and the SLUT.

Posted by Matt from Denver | December 19, 2007 1:39 PM
46

metro needs to add 2 extra 10,11,14,43,49 between 5:00 pm and 6:30 pm. an over crowded bus prevents people from wanting to ride it. it also means people have to wait longer. 2 extra buses on each of those routes might be good.

Posted by Bellevue Ave | December 19, 2007 1:41 PM
47

The SLUT was shut down for two hours Sunday evening; car parked on tracks. This has been covered up by the MSM clearly a conspiracy.

The ridership numbers will exceed the 1000 predicted by SDOT. Under estimate performance then when you do ok it looks good - GWB perfected the technique.

Andrew since the monorail had financing and an agency that was separate from the city no services would have been impacted. The streetcar actually uses a little GF money and will use all of the city's share of metro bus money increases for 2009. We could still have built the 1880 trolley technology even if the monorail was beig built.

The monorail was collecting about 40% less in Seattle than ST collected during the same time period.

Anyway, Andrew, I hope you are working for a real in-city system that does better than streetcar. We should test the citywide trolley routes with the IRIS hybrid trolley buses. If a route works, put in the trolley.

Posted by sherwin | December 19, 2007 1:50 PM
48

@3: Of course, that leads the the question of what other options there are if you reject at-grade transit.

The hatred directed towards the Viaduct suggests that any overhead solution will be rejected as too ugly/noisy/dangerous/etc.

And the bus tunnel has just closed again, proving that we can't build tunnels competently. (And there's also the Boston Big Dig to show what a nightmare tunneling can be.)

So, what?


@13: Seems unlikely at best. The tracks in systems like this are always the power *return*, which means they're at ground potential.

Posted by Orv | December 19, 2007 2:18 PM
49

I got hit by a car the other day. Can we please shut down car operations? I mean who thought to put the damn things in the middle of the road!? What is with the mayor.

Posted by Cale | December 19, 2007 2:27 PM
50

Sure, a lot of people have gone out with the SLUT ... but how many of these were one-night stands?

Posted by RonK, Seattle | December 19, 2007 2:50 PM
51

The SLUT was shut down for two hours because a car parked on the tracks?! I used to have to beat the tow trucks back with a stick even when I was parked in front of my own house. It shouldn't have taken 20 minutes to get that car outta there.

Posted by K X One | December 19, 2007 2:56 PM
52

@41,

Not to mention the reduced visibility, and I do realize that SUVs aren't truly safe, they simply offer the illusion of safety.

I guess I'll settle for advocating that SUV drivers be required to get special licenses, perhaps the same type of license required to operate a commercial vehicle.

Posted by keshmeshi | December 19, 2007 3:56 PM
53

Lesson learned. Run a red in south lake union; get smashed by SLUT.

They should make a t-shirt about this.

Posted by Michelle Moore | December 19, 2007 4:27 PM
54

They should learn to take the SLUT more seriously in the Red Light district.

Posted by NapoleonXIV | December 20, 2007 1:17 AM

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