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MILLCREEK — FrontRunner service was at a standstill Tuesday afternoon after a woman was hit and killed by a northbound train.
Unified police initially reported the woman jumped from an overpass at 300 West and 3900 South, the intersection where she was hit at 1:18 p.m. However, they continued to investigate Tuesday evening whether she may have entered the tracks there some other way.
It wasn't until a Utah Transit Authority worker inspected a mechanical issue on the train at the North Temple station in Salt Lake City that it was discovered that someone had been hit, Unified police detective Ken Hansen said.
"I don’t think the engineers can see the front of the train (itself) … because they’re so high up in the air," Hansen said, noting that the train was likely traveling about 50 mph to 60 mph at the time of impact. "(Also) if something falls from above, it might be difficult for them to see."
The woman was later identified as an 18-year-old from Millcreek. The woman deliberately took her own life, Hansen said.
An investigation of the incident included the entire track line between the Murray and North Temple stations. UTA on Twitter notified riders at 1:45 p.m. that tracks between Murray and Salt Lake City were closed in both directions, advising them to utilize TRAX or bus bridges between the Murray, Salt Lake Central and North Temple stations on their commute.
An hourly train was later scheduled to run between Murray and Provo, and a northbound train was being added at the North Temple station, UTA reported.
In response to questions from riders, UTA answered that it may be faster to call someone for a ride.
UTA FR Update 5:00pm: SB trains are being allowed in to SLC, but not to Murray . The bus bridge is now servicing SLC/Murray stations
— UTA (@RideUTA) April 26, 2016
All tracks were completely cleared by about 5:40 p.m., though the agency warned commuters to "expect residual delays."
Jason Johnson, who commutes on FrontRunner daily between Lehi and Salt Lake City, found little clear instruction from UTA officials when he arrived at the North Temple station shortly after it was shut down. Not knowing what to do, he arranged for his wife to drive from Lehi to pick him up.
"We have a 2-year-old and 2-month-old, so it makes it even harder for her to have to drive up here now," Johnson said.
He said he planned to continue to watch the UTA Twitter account for more instructions, a habit he has gotten into as part of his commute.
"Every morning when I leave to catch the train, I have to check Twitter to see what's going on," Johnson said.
