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Car Forum / Driving, Maintenance, Tuning / Driving / January 2008Forget "Speed-Related" - Here's a "GPS-Related" Crash
Here's a genius who was so busy looking at his NeverLost screen that he didn't notice there was a train coming. HTF did he get "stuck" on the tracks? And HTF do they figure that the rental car company is liable for ANYTHING? Do they self-insure all their cars or something? http://www.azstarnet.com/sn/hourlyupdate/219085.php Man using GPS drives in front of train in New York suburb The Associated Press Published: 01.04.2008 BEDFORD HILLS, N.Y. A Global Positioning System can tell a driver a lot of things but apparently not when a train is coming. A computer consultant driving a rental car drove onto train tracks Wednesday using the instructions his GPS unit gave him. A train was barreling toward him, but he escaped in time and no one was injured. The driver had turned right, as the system advised, and the car somehow got stuck on the tracks at the crossing. He jumped out and tried to warn the engineer by waving. He got out of the way just before the train slammed into the car at 60 mph, Metro-North railroad spokesman Dan Brucker said Thursday. The car was pushed more than 100 feet during the fiery crash. Some 500 train passengers were stranded for more than two hours during the Wednesday evening rush hour. The accident also heavily damaged 250 feet of rail, Brucker said. The railroad said that the driver was issued a minor summons for obstructing a railroad crossing and that he and his rental company would be liable for the damage, estimated in the hundreds of thousands of dollars.  SignatureA cause of Reaction Formation is when a person seeks to cover up something unacceptable by adopting an opposite stance. For example the gay person who [...] may be concealing their homosexual reality. This may be a conscious concealment but also may well occur at the subconscious level such that they do not realize the real cause of their behavior. Reaction Formation thus can turn homosexual tendencies (love men) to homophobic ones (hate men). Freud called the exaggerated compensation that can appear in Reaction Formation overboarding as the person is going overboard in one direction to distract from and cover up something unwanted in the other direction [...] http://changingminds.org/explanations/behaviors/coping/reaction_formation.htm Scott in SoCal: > Here's a genius who was so busy looking at his NeverLost screen that > he didn't notice there was a train coming. > > HTF did he get "stuck" on the tracks? That's what I keep wondering. At first, I thought maybe ha made a right turn to drive down the tracks (as if they were a road) but apparently this is not the case. > And HTF do they figure that the rental car company is liable for > ANYTHING? Do they self-insure all their cars or something? Because they own the car and let a total idiot drive it? > http://www.azstarnet.com/sn/hourlyupdate/219085.php > [quoted text clipped - 13 lines] > before the train slammed into the car at 60 mph, Metro-North railroad > spokesman Dan Brucker said Thursday. Damn. Darwin just missed. SignatureCarl Troller melts down in another victory for sensible driving over the rabid "slow = safe," nanny-nazis: "I didn't realize this was some teenage head-butting contest. You just made me sick enough to leave for good." --"Brad," (a.k.a. Carl Troller), 12/08/2006 Ref: http://tinyurl.com/ylf955 Message ID: 1165563989.317954.88270@j72g2000cwa.googlegroups.com > Scott in SoCal: > [quoted text clipped - 6 lines] >turn to drive down the tracks (as if they were a road) but apparently >this is not the case. Turns out that is exactly what happened. The nav system instructed him to turn right onto a road that was adjacent and parallel to the tracks, but he turned onto the tracks themselves instead. http://www.wfsb.com/news/14974760/detail.html Bai, a computer technician, told Metropolitan Transportation Authority police that his rental car's GPS system instructed him to turn right as he was crossing the tracks in Bedford Hills shortly after 7 p.m. Brucker said Bai's Ford Focus became stuck on the running rails. Bai tried to back up, couldn't, and fled the car as the Harlem line train approached. The driver told MTA police that he thought he was turning onto the Saw Mill River Parkway North. Police said Bai was not impaired by drugs or alcohol. SignatureA cause of Reaction Formation is when a person seeks to cover up something unacceptable by adopting an opposite stance. For example the gay person who [...] may be concealing their homosexual reality. This may be a conscious concealment but also may well occur at the subconscious level such that they do not realize the real cause of their behavior. Reaction Formation thus can turn homosexual tendencies (love men) to homophobic ones (hate men). Freud called the exaggerated compensation that can appear in Reaction Formation overboarding as the person is going overboard in one direction to distract from and cover up something unwanted in the other direction [...] http://changingminds.org/explanations/behaviors/coping/reaction_formation.htm > The driver told MTA police that he thought he was turning onto the Saw > Mill River Parkway North. Police said Bai was not impaired by drugs or > alcohol. Just plain impaired. Scott in SoCal: > Turns out that is exactly what happened. The nav system instructed him > to turn right onto a road that was adjacent and parallel to the > tracks, but he turned onto the tracks themselves instead. > > http://www.wfsb.com/news/14974760/detail.html Wow. Initial suspicion was correct! Looks like this guy is so dense, he makes krl rgrz look intelligent (or is that too much of a stretch?)... SignatureCarl Troller melts down in another victory for sensible driving over the rabid "slow = safe," nanny-nazis: "I didn't realize this was some teenage head-butting contest. You just made me sick enough to leave for good." --"Brad," (a.k.a. Carl Troller), 12/08/2006 Ref: http://tinyurl.com/ylf955 Message ID: 1165563989.317954.88270@j72g2000cwa.googlegroups.com > Scott in SoCal: > [quoted text clipped - 6 lines] >turn to drive down the tracks (as if they were a road) but apparently >this is not the case. Here's the location: http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&hl=en&geocode=&time=&date=&ttype=&ie=UTF8&ll=41. 226824,-73.716563&spn=0.000509,0.001255&t=h&z=20&om=1 And here's some more info: http://www.thejournalnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080103/NEWS01/8010304 09/1020/NEWS04 Bai, who has been working in Fishkill, was driving west on Green Lane around 7 p.m., and told Metropolitan Transportation Authority police the GPS system instructed him to turn right as he was crossing the tracks. He was headed for the Saw Mill River Parkway, just past the tracks. He got stuck, tried unsuccessfully to reverse and finally abandoned the 2006 Ford Focus minutes before it was slammed by a northbound Metro-North Harlem Line train, MTA police said. "As the car is driving over the tracks, the GPS system tells him to turn right, and he turns right onto the railroad tracks," said Brucker. "That's how it happened." Signature"Therefore, you are not worth my time... Have an excellent weekend, Sunshine. Truth be told, I'll be too busy to respond back to you. My fiancée and I will be too busy love-making!" - Carl Rogers, Message-ID: <kekKg.23278$gY6.2474@newssvr11.news.prodigy.com> Scott in SoCal: > Bai, who has been working in Fishkill, was driving west on Green Lane > around 7 p.m., and told Metropolitan Transportation Authority police > the GPS system instructed him to turn right as he was crossing the > tracks. He was headed for the Saw Mill River Parkway, just past the > tracks. SO he automatically initiated a right turn when the GPS told him to? Like I said in my earlier post, damn, Darwin missed. Signature-- "Those who would give up Essential Liberty to purchase a little Temporary Safety, deserve neither Liberty nor Safety." --Benjamin Franklin >> Scott in SoCal: >> [quoted text clipped - 28 lines] >turn right, and he turns right onto the railroad tracks," said >Brucker. "That's how it happened." He might be able to sue the gps company for misleading instructions. But any idiot would know that railroad tracks are not a roadway. Being so close to the actual turn, could he not see it? Since the road he is on is giving him an option to turn right or left, aren't there signs posted about that? Sure hope he had insurance on the car. richard: > He might be able to sue the gps company for misleading instructions. > But any idiot would know that railroad tracks are not a roadway. Key word: idiot. > Being so close to the actual turn, could he not see it? > Since the road he is on is giving him an option to turn right or left, > aren't there signs posted about that? > Sure hope he had insurance on the car. I hope not. Since Darwin missed this numbnutz, the next best thing would be for him to be sent to financial ruin. As such, I hope that the RR has suffcient insurance to cover repairs to the train and the track. Signature"Don't taze me, bro! <Bzzztzzztzzztzzt> Owwwwwwwwwwwwww" --Andrew Meyer > richard: >> He might be able to sue the gps company for misleading instructions. >> But any idiot would know that railroad tracks are not a roadway. > >Key word: idiot. He's a regular BaBa Bo Bai. (Howard Stern fans will probably get that reference.) SignatureA cause of Reaction Formation is when a person seeks to cover up something unacceptable by adopting an opposite stance. For example the gay person who [...] may be concealing their homosexual reality. This may be a conscious concealment but also may well occur at the subconscious level such that they do not realize the real cause of their behavior. Reaction Formation thus can turn homosexual tendencies (love men) to homophobic ones (hate men). Freud called the exaggerated compensation that can appear in Reaction Formation overboarding as the person is going overboard in one direction to distract from and cover up something unwanted in the other direction [...] http://changingminds.org/explanations/behaviors/coping/reaction_formation.htm > On Sat, 5 Jan 2008 00:57:59 -0500, necromancer > [quoted text clipped - 5 lines] > > He's a regular BaBa Bo Bai. Fafafooey. I knew there was something about you that the 'Vette was hiding. Under that crude exterior, a cultured individual. :) E.P. >>> Scott in SoCal: >>> [quoted text clipped - 30 lines] > >He might be able to sue the gps company for misleading instructions. Unfortunately you're right, but then again the gps company SHOULD be allowed to counter sue on the grounds of stupidity. >But any idiot would know that railroad tracks are not a roadway. One would think, but an AMAZING number of idiots manage to kill themselves using trains to do so. >Being so close to the actual turn, could he not see it? You're under the false impression that a lot of drivers know what's going on beyond their bumpers. This guy proves that at least he did not. >Since the road he is on is giving him an option to turn right or left, >aren't there signs posted about that? >Sure hope he had insurance on the car. I hope the dumb a.s gets sued into oblivion, but with that comes the stigma that other policy holders have to foot the bill. I do hope his license takes a ding, and his insurance skyrockets for a period of time. This idiot needs to be removed from the road before he kills someone. -- Sarcasm is my sword Apathy is my shield > A computer consultant driving a rental car drove onto train tracks > Wednesday using the instructions his GPS unit gave him. I think I've worked with this "computer consultant"... or at least, it seems like I've cleaned up a lot of code written by him... >http://www.azstarnet.com/sn/hourlyupdate/219085.php > [quoted text clipped - 4 lines] >BEDFORD HILLS, N.Y. — A Global Positioning System can tell a driver a >lot of things — but apparently not when a train is coming. Nor when the light is red or there's cross traffic? WTF does the GPS have to do with it? If he'd had a sheet of written directions or a map, that would have indicated that he should cross the tracks too. [blah blah blah] Your signature is too f.cking long. SignatureThere's no such thing as a free lunch, but certain accounting practices can result in a fully-depreciated one. > Nor when the light is red or there's cross traffic? WTF does the GPS > have to do with it? If he'd had a sheet of written directions or a > map, that would have indicated that he should cross the tracks too. I take it you've never used a GPS. The GPS system will give you spoken directions, such as announcing in a human voice, "Turn Right". The problem is, some drivers take those suggestions as commands which must be obeyed RIGHT NOW. Using written directions, the driver would (hopefully) choose an appropriate place to turn right, if not necessarily the correct street to lead him to his destination. With a GPS, it's damned hard to get lost, but the GPS will often announce the next turn in places that seem inappropriate. For example, you are crossing a bridge over a river and GPS announces, "Turn Right", because it wants you to take the NEXT right onto Elm Street (but it made the announcement in the middle of the bridge leading to Elm Street). Do you then drive off the bridge into the river? So it's up to the driver to interpret any direction that the GPS gives the driver. In the OP case, the driver simply f.cked up. And it's at least somewhat likely that the driver would not have made the same mistake using written directions. -Dave >> Nor when the light is red or there's cross traffic? WTF does the GPS >> have to do with it? If he'd had a sheet of written directions or a [quoted text clipped - 4 lines] >is, some drivers take those suggestions as commands which must be obeyed >RIGHT NOW. Only if they are dumbasses. Typically the phrasing is more like "right turn ahead" or "turn right at the next street." There is also a "progress bar" that tells you how far away from the turn you are. Finally, when you reach the turn, the nav system will give you a couple of bong sounds to let you know "HERE is the place - make your turn NOW!" Anyone with more than a single-digit IQ can use such a system to navigate successfully. Signature"You can all kiss my @ss!" - Carl Rogers, Message-ID: <IE1ej.2353$se5.298@nlpi069.nbdc.sbc.com> >Your signature is too f.cking long. Cal-El's is longer, yet you never complain about his. Why is that? Signature"I personally do not care what others in this group value in terms of your contributions. You're closed-mindedness will ensure an artificial barrier which should keep you in the east coast of the United States." - Carl Rogers, Message-ID: <DAdUg.10629$6S3.3073@newssvr25.news.prodigy.net> >>Your signature is too f.cking long. > >Cal-El's is longer, yet you never complain about his. > >Why is that? Probably because I don't read his posts at all, except by accident. BTW, thank you for the shorter signature. SignatureThere's no such thing as a free lunch, but certain accounting practices can result in a fully-depreciated one. > Here's a genius who was so busy looking at his NeverLost screen that > he didn't notice there was a train coming. [quoted text clipped - 5 lines] > > http://www.azstarnet.com/sn/hourlyupdate/219085.php "A computer consultant driving a rental car ..." A sad commentary on the trust people put in all this techno-garbage. SignaturePaul Hovnanian mailto:Paul@Hovnanian.com ------------------------------------------------------------------ Bumper sticker: You're too close for missiles. Switching to guns. |
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