Why, exactly, is a train death in Santa Clara relevant news for we citizens of Mountain View?

I think a fatality on the Santa Clara track affects the schedule all along the line, including Mountain View. Maybe that is why it was reported. It's tragic and may the man rest in peace.

Lydia, thanks for being patient enough to state the obvious. I think most, like me, just rolled their eyes.

I rode Caltrain yesterday and this incident definitely impacted the entire line. My train coming home at 7:49 pm from Palo Alto was 45 minutes late. Yes it is relevant.

I was on the train that hit the man. Always so horrible to feel the engineer brake the train hard because you know what it means. It means someone could be dead, and that you'll be stuck on the train an extra 90 minutes to two hours while they investigate, inspect, and otherwise recover from a scary if not deadly incident.

I was also on the train that hit the car on Mary Ave in Sunnyvale where the sheriff pulled the guy out in the nick of time. This guy wasn't so lucky. RIP

A man is hit by a train. The line comes to a stop. Is there any lesson to be learned here? A car hits a man, not all cars are forced to stop. If a bus hit a man, it would probably just be covered up but, in any event, the roadway would not completely lost. But a train and anything else on a track presents a real risk of massive disruption of travel. Thank goodness terrorists will never figure this out.

When anyone dies by suicide, shouldn't we, as a society, ask how we failed this individual? Our county has a huge lack of mental health services whether it be in our jails or in the hospitals. None of the hospitals in Santa Clara County offer a single bed for anyone under 18 who is suicidal (or in another mental health crisis). All youth are sent out-of-county for care. It's no wonder that that some individuals end up on the tracks to end their pain.

I was an eyewitness to last week's fatality in Santa Clara. I was waiting on the platform for ACE 08 as Caltrain 375 approached at a high speed. This older gentleman stood up, stared at the train's headlights, took a few side-steps toward the edge of the platform and then stepped right onto the tracks. This whole thing took place in about 5 seconds. By the time anybody realized what he was up to, it was too late and too dangerous to attempt saving him. What was left of him ended up north of the station. Several of us were interviewed by police.