Uber passenger killed after car struck by TRAX

SALT LAKE CITY — One person is dead after the car they were in was hit by a TRAX train Wednesday morning at 700 South and West Temple.

James Larson, PR and marketing strategist with the Utah Transit Authority, said the collision occurred at approximately 7:54 a.m. The train was headed eastbound at a green light and a southbound car ran a red light at 40 mph.

The back end of the car clipped the front end of the train, and the passenger of the vehicle was killed.

Larson confirmed the car was an Uber with one passenger, and the driver had no injuries.

Community members rushed to give the passenger CPR, but the passenger died on scene.

“The vehicle entered the intersection, and the train t-boned it,” said Capt. Jason Petersen with UTA Police.

This crash happened to occur during Utah’s “Rail Safety Week.” 

UTA executive director Jay Fox said it’s important people pay attention when near TRAX.

“Trains can’t stop quickly, but you can,” Fox said.

“When you get in an accident with a train, the train usually wins… even a low-speed train can cause a lot of damage,” said Petersen.

UTA said they do have camera footage on the intersection, so answers as to what exactly happened will likely piece together in the future. 

The SLCPD accident investigation team is investigating.

Larson said to expect 700 South to be closed for 3-5 hours but said there will be a UTA bus bridge between the Courthouse and Ballpark stations.