My wife rides the DART light rail system, and several times in the last few months she has witnessed fights and disturbances both on the light rail and at the rail stations. She is regularly approached by panhandlers and street people.

On Aug. 15, she boarded the southbound light rail at the St. Paul Station at 4:35 p.m. About 12 young adults, both male and female, began using foul and abusive language. When a Hispanic passenger began to argue with them and they began talking of gangs and the Mexican Mafia, my wife moved farther away (to the front seat of the first car). They immediately began shouting obscenities at her, such as, "Look, the bitch is scared." The argument escalated as the train approached West End, and she determined that she would get off there to avoid them. Instead, they got off and were immediately involved in a physical fight with the Hispanic passenger.

According to my wife and other witnesses, the DART driver observed this disturbance but offered no assistance, either personally or by radio, until stopped at the red light right before the West End rail station. When the light rail stopped at the West End, the fight spilled onto the street at the station.

If DART cannot provide some semblance of order on the trains they now have, they have no business running a transportation system and trying to expand it to other cities. I believe that a survey of riders would confirm our contention that it is uncontrolled and hazardous.

Jerry Walters, Irving