by MCL1981
That would not prevent a single thing. That accident happened because the driver was inattentive to the obvious. A sign wouldn't change that which is already obvious and being neglected.
Railroad Forums
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Following the rise in terrorist vehicle attacks whereby a vehicle is driven at speed into pedestrians, a net with steel spikes that can be deployed by two people in less than a minute, reported able to stop a vehicle of up to 17 tonnes, was developed for preventive use at public events in the UK, with the name "Talon". It has steel spikes to puncture tyres, and becomes entangled around the front wheels, halting the vehicle. It is designed to reduce risk to crowds by making the vehicle skid in a straight line without veering unpredictably. It was first deployed to protect a parade on 11 September 2017.
Arborwayfan wrote:I like it, ExCon. If rental trucks can have their height on the dashboard, school buses, other buses, and non-trailer-trucks can have their length there. Cheap and easy.Sorry, but this is crazy. I used to own a school bus company and any responsible driver would not attempt this move no matter how long their bus was. You are only talking about maybe a car length between a small and full size school bus. Are you really going to try to squeeze a bus load of kids into a space that tight?
MCL1981 wrote:That would not prevent a single thing. That accident happened because the driver was inattentive to the obvious. A sign wouldn't change that which is already obvious and being neglected.It wasn't obvious to the driver that she was driving a bus that was longer than her usual one. Maybe it was obvious when she got on, but it seems she forgot. A notice on the dashboard might have kept it in her consciousness. According to bostontrainguy's post above, apparently the Illinois authorities thought it was worth doing.
bostontrainguy wrote:Are you really going to try to squeeze a bus load of kids into a space that tight?Someone did.
Arborwayfan wrote:While changing from trolley to bus at Lilleaker station in Oslo this afternoon, I watched the four-quadrant gates go down a couple of times. At that crossing, the ones on the right side (ie the ones in front of cars on the proper side of the road) go all the way down before the other two start. I assume that is to avoid trapping anyone who is on the tracks when they start to go down. Is that standard practice in the US, too?Yes.
Arborwayfan wrote:While changing from trolley to bus at Lilleaker station in Oslo this afternoon, I watched the four-quadrant gates go down a couple of times. At that crossing, the ones on the right side (ie the ones in front of cars on the proper side of the road) go all the way down before the other two start. I assume that is to avoid trapping anyone who is on the tracks when they start to go down. Is that standard practice in the US, too?No, it's not. In almost every location, our crossing barriers are only across the driving side, and the other side is not covered by the barrier. This is how people 'go around' the barriers. I've never seen a typical European crossing barrier in the US. Your barriers also often have an upper and lower element; ours only have a single fiberglass arm.
bostontrainguy wrote:I would also think it would be easy enough to have detection loops embedded in the roadway to prevent that second gate from trapping someone.It would be even easier to have them spring loaded so that they pivot away when pushed from the track side.
CLamb wrote:You got to think that when people are in a stressful situation, like a train barreling right at them, they will panic or freeze. I would guess that a unknowing driver may not realize they can easily just drive through a gate. Seems logical but fear and terror will alter sensibilities.bostontrainguy wrote:I would also think it would be easy enough to have detection loops embedded in the roadway to prevent that second gate from trapping someone.It would be even easier to have them spring loaded so that they pivot away when pushed from the track side.