As shuttle busses fill gaps after RTD derailment, questions arise as to how it happened

It was supposed to be the final stop Saturday morning, except it wasn't. The W line light rail train kept on going. The question is, why?

Stuart Summers, a RTD spokesman said the cause of the derailment is not yet clear.

"We're conducting a full investigation so we can understand anything that led up to this and then we can make sure that we have the proper things in place today to make sure this doesn't happen again," he said.

There were only five people on the training, including the operator, when it derailed. Two people suffered minor injuries.

Shuttle buses were put in place to cover the gap between the Red Rocks Community College and Jefferson County stations. 

José Martinez, a light rail rider, says some people were caught off guard: "I saw people running here to go to court because they were late saying, 'get out of my way!"'

This wasn't the first time.

Derailment of trains occurred on the R line, last September and before that in January 2019. Both were determined to be due to operator error and the drivers were fired for speeding. Each occurred at South Sable Boulevard and East Exposition Avenue in Aurora on a curve.

Extra precautions were put in place by RTD, including enhanced training of operators, adding speed limit signage and shared safety information.

Passengers at the Jefferson County station waited up to an hour for a shuttle bus after the latest incident. 

Edward Trujillo, a light rail rider, was among them.

"There's no signage where to go," he said. "Tape blocked off all the way around it's just inconvenient. I understand what happened, but yeah."

The derailed train has been put back on the tracks and transported to a shop where it can undergo repairs.

RTD is apologizing and has been asked by the Public Utilities Commission to investigate how the derailment occurred.