This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2011, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
Murray • An 86-year-old man was hit and killed by TRAX train in Murray on Monday morning.
The accident occurred at about 8:15 a.m. near 4100 South and 200 West on the Red Line TRAX route, involving a southbound train traveling from the University of Utah to Daybreak, according to Gerry Carpenter, spokesman for the Utah Transit Authority.
UTA officials said it is the sixth pedestrian fatality this year involving UTA trains. Two have been killed by FrontRunner trains and four by TRAX.
Unified police Detective Shane Manwaring said the man whose name has not yet been released was from Midvale.
Manwaring said the man left his car, with his keys and ID still inside, west of the tracks. He said whether the man intended to jump in front of the train is still "under investigation."
The victim appeared to have been a pedestrian on Central Avenue, which is 4105 South, according to Cliff Burningham of the Unified Fire Authority. He confirmed the safety features of the crossing were active, and that the guard arms were still down more than an hour after the accident.
Carpenter said it was unclear whether the pedestrian was in a designated walking area.
Trains in the area would be traveling between 45 and 50 mph, he said.
UTA officials said the investigation of the scene was completed by 11:30 a.m., and by noon TRAX was again running on schedule.
Initially, TRAX on the Red and Blue Lines were significantly delayed, while Green Line TRAX were not heavily affected, Carpenter said.
Due to the incident, bus Routes 39 and 41 detoured using 4500 South between Main Street and 500 West to help passengers connect. But it didn't help all passengers.
One passenger got on TRAX near downtown and nearly two hours later had only made it to South Salt Lake.
April Warneke of Salt Lake said she and her toddler were making their way to Sandy when they ran into the delay. All she was told by TRAX operators was that there was "something wrong with the TRAX line." Many passengers said the only additional details they were given was after calling the UTA help line. She waited at one stop as long as 40 minutes.
Another commuter left Sandy two hours previously and had only made it half-way to work downtown.
"I just decided to go with it," Sue Jeffs said, adding that she will use vacation time to make up the lost time. "There isn't much else I can do."
Passengers on alternating north and southbound trains gazed on as they passed the sheet-covered body located between the two tracks and surrounded by officers.
The driver of the TRAX train will undergo routine drug and alcohol testing, Carpenter said.
He said people need to be cautious around TRAX.
"These incidents are tragic," Carpenter said. "We're always concerned about pedestrian safety on and around our system."
smcfarland@sltrib.com Twitter: @sheena5427 cimaron@sltrib.com Twitter: @CimCity