Editing Light rail (section)

===System-wide considerations===
[[File:GCLR Set 9 at Broadwater Parklands 2014-09-28.jpg|thumb|The [[Gold Coast, Queensland]], [[G:link|G:Link]] light rail runs on a mix of a dedicated right of way, tunnels, and at grade intersections.]]
Many light rail systems—even fairly old ones—have a combination of both on- and off-road sections. In some countries (especially in Europe), only the latter is described as light rail. In those places, trams running on mixed rights-of-way are not regarded as a light rail but considered distinctly as streetcars or trams. However, the requirement for saying that a rail line is "separated" can be quite low—sometimes just with concrete "buttons" to discourage automobile drivers from getting onto the tracks. Some systems such as [[Link light rail|Seattle's Link]] had on-road mixed sections but were closed to regular road traffic, with light rail vehicles and buses both operating along a common right-of-way (however, Link converted to full separation in 2019).

Some systems, such as the [[AirTrain JFK]] in New York City, the [[Docklands Light Railway|DLR]] in London, and [[Kelana Jaya Line]] in [[Kuala Lumpur]], have dispensed with the need for an operator. The [[Vancouver]] [[SkyTrain (Vancouver)|SkyTrain]] was an early adopter of driverless vehicles, while the [[Toronto]] [[Scarborough RT|Scarborough rapid transit]] operated the same trains as Vancouver, but used drivers. In most discussions and comparisons, these specialized systems are generally not considered light rail but as [[medium-capacity rail system|light metro]] systems.