'Mommy bloggers' and families take first rides aboard new TRAX line

Salt Lake Tribune photo

A story at The Salt Lake Tribune details the demonstration ride aboard TRAX for an invited group: so-called "mommy bloggers."

Showing how important social media have become, the first public demonstration ride on the new Mid-Jordan TRAX line Friday went to families of "mommy bloggers," who write online about parenting and children’s activities.

"These are some of Utah’s top bloggers," said Tauni Everett, who handles social media for the Utah Transit Authority. "They are read all over the state — and the nation. We hope they will advertise train safety for kids and parents."

Everett said bloggers will help spread the word about the new Mid-Jordan and West Valley City TRAX lines that begin service on Aug. 7.

Tribune editorializes on TRAX safety

I missed it last month, but The Salt Lake Tribune's editorial board offered its collective opinion on the subject of train safety in a house editorial. It's headlined, "Watch for Trains."

It concludes:

On the West Valley line, drivers will have to learn to share the road with trains. On the Mid-Jordan line, where the trains will operate in their own rights of way, pedestrians and drivers will have to be vigilant at crossings.

Experience shows that when new lines open, there is a rash of accidents until people become familiar with the new hazard. We hope that last week’s death will warn people to take extraordinary care around the new TRAX lines.

Tribune: 'TRAX moves to color coding'

The Salt Lake Tribune reports that UTA has begun color-coding its TRAX lines.

The Utah Transit Authority has decided what new “color name” to attach to each of its TRAX lines. Not surprisingly, the line that travels to the University of Utah will become the red line.

FOX13: UTA tests TRAX safety measures along Mid-Jordan line

At FOX13, there's a story about UTA testing the newly modified safety measures on the Mid-Jordan TRAX line. Read it here.

 

WEST JORDAN, Utah — Test TRAX trains were on the new Mid-Jordan line again Tuesday, four weeks after 15-year-old Shariah Casper was killed by a train in West Jordan.

Watch the video here:
 

New TRAX trains in service July 7, etc.

RailwayAge reports that,

Some TRAX passengers in Salt Lake City and vicinity will begin riding Siemens S70 light rail transit cars Thursday, July 7, as the cars begin entering revenue service. The S70s will enter limited service on direct trains that operate from Fashion Place Station (6400 South) in Murray to the University of Utah Medical Center Station on weekdays. The new trains will be featured on 10 northbound and 10 southbound trips each day.

The Mid-Jordan and West Valley TRAX lines are scheduled to open Aug. 7 and will operate exclusively with the new vehicles.

Those of us who frequently ride the downtown TRAX lines will find interesting:

UTA notes the S70 vehicles are low-floor cars that allow riders to board straight from the platform without climbing stairs.

I'm just curious as to whether the new trains work with existing platforms at established stations. I'm guessing they do, but maybe not.

And at The Salt Lake Tribune: "TRAX replacing broken electronic sign system"

When electronic signs at TRAX stations were new, they displayed when the next trains would arrive. But they quit working, and have been little more than digital clocks amid such problems as not being able to obtain replacement parts.

"The old signs had reached the end of their life cycle. We couldn’t get replacement parts. Support was not available. Some of the [companies] that built the original system had gone out of business," said UTA spokesman Gerry Carpenter.

He said UTA found that because of such problems, the old signs would not be compatible with new signs it is installing on the new Mid-Jordan and West Valley City lines (scheduled to open on Aug. 7) and other extensions that are under construction to Draper and Salt Lake City International Airport.

So UTA decided to install a new sign system. It has removed the old signs on the existing Sandy and University of Utah lines.

Carpenter said new signs will be installed at the older stations over the next several months. Transfer and high-traffic stations will receive them first, and they will be added at other stations as crews and resources are available, he said.

The Deseret News reports on a new UTA board member: Troy Walker, a Draper city councilman.

And a press release notes that:

Lawson Products, Inc., an industrial distributor of more than 300,000 maintenance and repair solutions, was awarded a three-year contract to supply all of the Utah Transit Authority's (UTA) fastener needs. As per the agreement, Lawson Products will provide a minimum of 2,500 different fastener products including bolts, hex head cap screws, miniature fasteners, nuts, screws, socket products and washers to the multi-modal transportation leader that will be used for ongoing train track, rail car and bus maintenance.

Finally, at KCPW: "Salt Lake-Park City Bus Route Slated for October Launch"

Test runs on the Mid-Jordan TRAX lines have been delayed

At The Salt Lake Tribune:

The Utah Transit Authority is again delaying resumption of test runs on its new Mid-Jordan TRAX line as it considers how to avoid accidents like the one that killed a 15-year-old in West Jordan on June 8.