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| |  | The Circuit Breaker, the first tilt roller coaster in the state. (Jay Janner/The Austin American-Statesman/Getty Images) |
| Riders Stuck on COTALAND’s Opening Weekend | A new amusement park at the Circuit of the Americas, called COTALAND, opened over the weekend bringing lots of visitors to try more than 30 rides. But a few attendees ended up stuck on a tilt coaster. Here’s what you need to know: | - At least nineteen people got stuck. On Saturday, the Circuit Breaker, the state’s first tilt coaster, stopped in a vertical position. Nineteen riders were stuck for nine minutes before the coaster switched into a horizontal position. The riders exited by walking down the ride. The ride stopped a second time on Sunday. Riders were stuck for two minutes before the coaster returned to its normal position. No one was injured in either incident and officials say occasional stops are normal for “sophisticated amusement rides.” [KSAT]
- The coaster has left a person stuck before. Earlier this year, a man sued the amusement park for negligence after he got stuck at a 90-degree angle on the Circuit Breaker for more than an hour in December. The lawsuit said the man and another rider were looking straight down about 130 feet in the air. The pair were not evacuated, and instead had to finish the ride when it started up again, the suit says. [CBS Austin]
- The park is part of a larger expansion. COTALAND is part of Circuit of the Americas’ plan to expand beyond racing. A hotel and convention center are planned for the venue. [KUT]
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| What Austin's Talking About |
| CapMetro Raises Fares | CapMetro is raising its fares for the first time in over a decade starting in January. Local fare will go from $1.25 to $1.50 and commuter fares will rise to $4 from $3.50. The fares will go up to $2 and $5, respectively, in 2029. [KVUE] | | Local Theater Announces Costume Sale in Time for Halloween | Sterling Stage Austin is putting on a costume sale Oct. 10-11, offering outfits from its productions. The sale, which is free to attend, also includes vintage clothes, sewing patterns, handmade hats, and more. VIP tickets are available for $5. [CultureMap Austin] | | Man Shot by ICE in Austin in Court Today | Wilber Rafael Garcés Pérez, the 28-year-old Venezuelan immigrant shot by a federal immigration agent in Austin earlier this month, is expected to appear in a federal court in San Antonio today. Garcés Pérez still has a bullet lodged in his back and his attorneys are seeking his release. [Texas Public Radio] | | | DWI Arrests Are Down | Driving while intoxicated arrests have dropped by more than half in the last 12 years. An investigation by KUT says the drop is due to ride-sharing services, which started here in 2014, and a lack of enforcement by Austin police as the department’s DWI Enforcement Unit was disbanded. [KUT] |
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