[BATN] Muni N-Judah train drags would-be rider 3 blocks to his death Date: Fri, 18 Jan 2008 19:56:09 -0000

Published Friday, January 18, 2008, by the San Francisco Examiner

Muni train drags man to his death

By Brent Begin
bbegin@examiner.com

SAN FRANCISCO -- A 40-year-old man was killed when he was dragged
nearly three blocks by an N-Judah light-rail train in the Sunset
district Wednesday night, marking the first Muni fatality of the
year and the latest in a growing number of Muni-versus-pedestrian
accidents.

Mark Callaghan, a San Francisco resident, was pulled under the
N-Judah at the intersection of Judah Street and 31st Avenue, and
was dragged to 28th Avenue, according to police.

The train's male operator was unaware he had hit Callaghan and was
dragging him along the popular commuter route until a motorist
alerted him, according to Muni spokesperson Janis Yuen.

Callaghan attempted to board an inbound N-Judah just after 9 p.m.,
according to police Sgt. Neville Gittens. He fell and was dragged
under the light-rail vehicle, according to witnesses. There are
conflicting witness accounts as to how Callaghan became attached
to the vehicle, said Gittens.

The fatality is the latest in a three-year trend of increased
numbers of Muni vehicle-pedestrian collisions in The City, according
to San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency data.

Correspondingly, there has been a rise in the total number of
fatalities resulting from those collisions, according to the data.

Muni officials point out that two of the fatalities last year were
considered suicides.

In addition to pedestrian collisions, there were 140 more Muni-
related accidents reported in 2007 than in the previous year when
1,414 were recorded. Accidents, defined by Muni, are all incidents
ranging from bumping a mirror to a serious injury. Because of this,
Yuen said the numbers are misleading,

The grisly fatality Wednesday night occurred an hour after another
collision, in which a Muni light-rail vehicle injured four people at
the intersection of Taraval Street and 44th Avenue. Police said that
collision was the result of a vehicle running a stop sign.

The L-Taraval then "T-boned" the car, sending two of its occupants to
San Francisco General Hospital, according to police, and injuring the
driver and a passenger of the Muni vehicle. The driver of the car was
cited for driving on a suspended license.

Yuen said Muni officials are instituting safety measures to address
the serious issue of pedestrian injuries and fatalities, such as
providing verbal, written and broadcast safety tips to Muni operators
in a "safety messaging blitz." Also, Muni plans to install simulators
on training buses and light-rail vehicles to better train new and
current operators, said Yuen, adding that Muni is launching a
multimedia safety campaign targeted to transit customers, pedestrians,
bicyclists and employees.

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