How safe are Charlotte's light rail crossings?

CHARLOTTE, NC — The LYNX light rail system has been running in Charlotte's South End since 2007, but not without some problems.

In 2017, there were three crashes between light rail cars and vehicles along the nearly 10-mile stretch.

Most recently, there was a crash involving several vehicles in December. It happened at the intersection of Clanton Road near South Blvd. A woman died and two others were hurt.

In March, at the Hebron crossing, an SUV sped in front of the train, somehow getting around the gates, and was T-boned. The driver in that vehicle was killed.

This year started with a crash at the Old Pineville Road crossing.

James Flynn was sitting in traffic a few cars back from the victim.

"She got past the gates, and then the lights went off," said Flynn. "When the train approached, it blew its horn. I think she panicked."

The driver of the Honda hit the gas, and the vehicle was crushed by the oncoming train and then pushed into a pole.

Amazingly, the woman inside survived.

Flynn told us he doesn't see the crash as completely the driver's fault. He thinks the crossing at Old Pineville has a design flaw. In fact, while Channel 9 crews were conducting the interview with Flynn at the intersection, a crash nearly happened again.

"Right now, this person is on the tracks. This is the exact situation," said Flynn as we watched.

The gates closed behind two cars as the train was coming down the tracks. As the train approached, it stopped. Channel 9 confirmed that's what engineers are trained to do.

During our 20-minute interview, the same thing happened two more times. We went to Charlotte Area Regional Transit (CATS) and asked if that intersection may need to be re-designed. Officials said safety features are already in place there.

"If we need to do additional signage, if we need to do pavement markings, it's a collaborative effort that we ensure that additional safety features are put in place," said David Maskowitz, the Rail Safety Manager.

With the light rail more than doubling in length in March with the Blue Line Extension into north Charlotte, we wanted to know what CATS is doing to make sure we don't' see the number of crashes double as well.

"We anticipate the same problems any railroad experiences," said Maskowitz.

There are more than a dozen new intersections with the extension and CATS has been doing practice runs for weeks - trying to give drivers a dry run.

But Channel 9 crews noticed four of the crossings with pedestrian walkways don't have gates - including two near UNC Charlotte where we saw some students distracted by their phones.

CATS said it is addressing safety for traffic and pedestrians.

"If they heed those warnings, they should be in a safe place as the train passes," said Maskowitz.

But if you ask Flynn, it's only a matter of time before we see more crashes.

"Inevitably, there is going to be accidents that will happen," he said.

Cox Media Group