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I live about 3 miles from that area, those tracks can be bad at times, but there is no reason to need to stop in the tracks. There is room for about 2 cars in front of the tracks (as the road T's at the end). Even in bumper to bumper traffic, I just don't understand why you would stop or put yourself in a situation to be stuck in the middle. Worst thing is an 18 wheeler no matter what they would do on those tracks would be sitting int he middle of the tracks if stopped at the stop sign.
When operating a motor vehicle, there is never any "reason" to make a mistake, except for the fact that we're human and do. We design roads, intersections, etc. knowing that mistakes are possible, so that we minimize the potential for those mistakes. I don't think saying "sorry lady, you screwed up and killed your kids" is really the right answer here. This is a railroad crossing that for whatever reason is susceptible to the kinds of mistakes that can kill or injure people. I don't know all the facts, but it seems to me that something needs to be done to avoid more tragedies like this - because we can pretty much bet that more mistakes will happen. (The news last night was showing numerous cars driving around the downed gates at this very RR crossing with a train presumably approaching.)
That's awfully harsh. This is a dangerous intersection that often gets clogged, and from what I've read she found herself trapped between the gates, stuck between other cars that were in in way (also waiting in the line of traffic) when the gates came down.
A dangerous intersection made all the more dangerous when children aren't properly buckled up. It's amazing to me that a parent would fail to have their 6- and 9-year-old children properly strapped into a vehicle at any time. I gues we'll never know for certain if it would have made a difference for these kids.
A dangerous intersection made all the more dangerous when children aren't properly buckled up. It's amazing to me that a parent would fail to have their 6- and 9-year-old children properly strapped into a vehicle at any time. I gues we'll never know for certain if it would have made a difference for these kids.
In this case, being buckled in might have been what killed them--if they were "loose", they might have all been able to jump out of the car in time?
I really don't think this is the time for judgment. There are reports she was trying to unbuckle them and get them out of their seats. The facts are not yet known. The only thing known is that this is a terrible tragedy. Many of us are just lucky that our "mistakes" have never turned into something so horrific as having to watch our loved ones die.
I really don't think this is the time for judgment. There are reports she was trying to unbuckle them and get them out of their seats. The facts are not yet known. The only thing known is that this is a terrible tragedy. Many of us are just lucky that our "mistakes" have never turned into something so horrific as having to watch our loved ones die.
Most excellent point of view. Thanks for this post.
The interval in the US is 32 seconds. There is a similar deadly potential in Fuquay-Varina. At least these are all marked. I lived in Miami where a railroad paralleled Dixie Highway. Somebody failed to beat the train at least once a week.
As I explained to my kids when they were learning to drive, "Trains do not hit cars. Cars get driven into the path of the train." Never pull past the gates until there is room for you to clear the tracks ahead.
If trapped, floor it and smash into the cars ahead. Better than dying . . .
A few years back I was riding an Amtrak train that hit a truck. The driver was hurt and bleeding but alive. I remember Amtrak staff repeating a similar line: we don't get off the tracks to hit cars.
Perhaps the signs at RR crossings need to be redesigned to be understandable to flea-brained drivers.
The message needs to be crystal clear such as:
"Do Not Enter the Crossing Unless You Can Immediately Cross to The Other Side"
"Do Not Stop On The Tracks"
"If Vehicle Stalls, Leave Vehicle Immediately"
We see this harebrained behavior often at the crossing on Millbrook Rd near Atlantic Ave.
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