It happens about a half dozen times a year and each time it befuddles me how it could happen.  Here's a newswriter snippit of the latest incident this afternoon:

A DART TRAIN HIT A CAR DURING THE NOON RUSH IN DOWNTOWN DALLAS.

IT HAPPENED NEAR THE FOX 4 STUDIOS AT NORTH GRIFFIN STREET AND PACIFIC AVENUE.

WITNESSES SAY THE TRAIN WAS GOING NORTH AND THE CAR MADE A WIDE RIGHT TURN INTO THE TRAIN.

THE DRIVER OF THE CAR GOT OUT O-K.

HE DID NOT WANT TO TALK.... BUT A PASSENGER ON THE TRAIN DESCRIBED THE EXPERIENCE AS NERVE-WRACKING.

I bet he did.  This goes without saying but please PLEASE never try to beat a train!

Construction crews assigned to building the extension of Woodall Rodgers over to I-30 can't buy a break.  The project is way behind schedule (no fault of theirs) and to make matters worse, a "must have" part of the Trinity River project might be delayed as well.  If you missed it on Good Day this morning, here's the rest of the story:

AN ITALIAN COMPANY IS BEHIND SCHEDULE... DELIVERING STEEL FOR THE "MARGARET HUNT HILL BRIDGE."

THE BRIDGE IS ONE OF THE MOST VISIBLE PARTS OF THE PLANS FOR THE TRINITY.

THE DELAY WILL PUT THE BRIDGE ABOUT A YEAR BEHIND ITS SCHEDULED COMPLETION DATE ... OF MID 2010.

So what do you think?  Will these bridges ever be built?

On Sunday Aug. 17th, 2008 at approximately 4:45 I was involved in a fender bender in front of Enriques Cafe at 9208 RL Thornton Freeway (I30), Dallas, TX 75228 in the Staples Shopping Center next to Wal-Mart. As I exited the vehicle the other driver stated she did not see me, that she was in a hurry to pick up her grandmother. Then she acted as if she was dialing 911 and stated that they advised her we need to go to a police substation to file a report. I moved my vehicle out of the way of traffic and proceeded to exchange information with the other drive. She gladly wrote down her name, drivers license number and expiration date for me but never showed me her license stating the one she had on her was expired. She stated her insurance card was in her vehicle. As i asked her for her insurance information she stated she needed to go pick up her mom and that she was going to a police station to file a report. I advised her that she can do whatever she wants after we exchange insurance information. She then instructed her son to take the vehicle and leave the scene in order to go pick up her elderly mother. It was at this point i figured something was fishy, so I dialed 911, gave them the plate numbers to the vehicle, advised them what had happened and where I was and was told an officer would be dispatched. After several phone calls to 911 regarding the ridiculous and unacceptable response time two officers finally arrived an hour later. One white officer and one black officer. When the officers arrived and got an observation of the area the the white male officer instructed the black female officer that he was able to handle it and that she may leave. The black female officer chose to remain at the scene (it is my opinion that she remained because the other driver and her passengers were black). At this time I had already decided I would file a complaint due to the unacceptable 911 response time, so I made note of the white officers name on his name tag and his badge number. As I asked the black officer for her name, as she was not wearing a name badge, she rudely advised me that I can get that from the report. The white officer then proceed to question the other driver as to when she bought her vehicle and she advised him she bought it in 2001. He advised her the handicap plates on her vehicle have been expired since 2005. The black officer then whispered something to him and he advised her that he ran the plates before getting to the scene. So at this point the other driver has no drivers license, no proof of insurance, and expired tags. It would seem to me she is driving this vehicle illegaly and had she not been on the road then there may not have been an accident. However, moving forward, the white officer proceed to get my side of the story, then got her side of the story. The two officers then moved away to consult with each other and the black officer did most of the talking as the white officer listened. Then they approached us and said we have two options. We can either work it out amongst ourselves without filing a report. Or we can move forward with filing a report. I advised the office I have been hit by uninsured drivers before and always ended up getting screwed, therefore I would like the report filed. I advised him there has to be some kind of consequences for uninsured drivers, to which he stated she would receive a couple of citations. I asked him if the driver doesn't have proof of financial responsibility (insurance) isn't it a state law that the car gets towed and impounded until proof of insurance can be provided. He advised it's really at the officers discretion to have the vehicle towed or not. So I received my report number and was on my way feeling as if I had been a victim of injustice throughout this whole ordeal. So hopefully someone can help me hear and answer a few questions.

1. Is it not a law that the car gets towed and impounded for failure to provide proof of insurance?

2. Since this driver is uninsured, if judgement is found against me when i report it to my insurance company, can I demand they not pay the claim, since the other driver was operating the vehicle illegaly?

3. If 911 was called and officers dispatched, at that point wouldn't it be mandatory for them to file a report?

4.Was I a victim of racial discrimination? As I am a hispanic male, and the black officer stayed at the scene after she was told she can leave, then proceeded to apparently control the whole situation and tried to talk me out of filing a report as she kept saying most likely 99.9% I would be found to be at fault and my insurance rates would rise.

5. Who can I contact to file an offical complaint regardint 911 response times and the car not getting towed by the officers?

If anyone would care to help me out here the report number is 255100V