Brightline hits people

You cannot fix STUPID. Over 40 years ago I regularly took the SEPTA commuter train from Bucks County to Philly. The rails were shared with Amtrak. Every year one or two people were killed because they would try to cross the tracks instead of using the pedestrian underpass. The Metroliners were quiet and fast. You cannot fix this problem.

Gerry

I just hope they can sort it out and the line is popular enough to move up into areas where we have connections.  Who knows maybe I'll have one on my layout sometime...

Here’s a tongue in cheek suggestion; we require all citizens of southeast Florida who live with two miles either side of the Brightline tracks to begin wearing dog collars capable of delivering a mild electric shock.  When a train approaches a crossing or pedestrian crosswalk; an underground electrical wire is activated and anyone attempting to cross will receive a mild shock.  

This works to keep dogs in their yards; perhaps it would work to keep clueless people off the tracks.  😉

Curt

Topic title should be changed to “people walk in front of moving train”. 

I think maybe the gates come down too slowly.  Near the end of the article they gave a 40 second time line for an approach. 15 seconds of that bring the gates down. That's long enough for folks to try to cheat and lose the bet.

This "news" is a year old. At the time, these trains were very new.

Here's a more recent article on the topic. It mixes the personal, various stats, proposed mitigations and other related issues confronting the new line.  I hope they get it sorted out and can run the trains north to other population centers.  It's on my list to take a ride soon.

https://www.miaminewtimes.com/...uth-florida-11089400

Commuter trains have killed hundreds over the years in Chicago. Many of them were passengers running across the tracks to board the train.

Hers an OLD chart.

So,,,,,,after reading all this, just how has the subject trains been diverting off the tracks in order to "kill people"? As the current news media is proc to report, "The Amtrak train killed the elderly couple at the grade crossing in XXXXXXX!". Never mind the fact that those killed, in fact drove around the lowered warning gates with all the lights & bells activated. Those darned trains are simply killing way to many humans!

Miami New Times writes “Most railroad fatalities are the result of ‘trespassing,’ a technical term that some family members find cruel.”

Seriously?  

Well I'm just pointing out overall I think that it still falls to the train organizations to get a safety record that communities can live with.

Brightline is a great example of what appears to be a huge success overall, but they aren't likely to expand into say the Disney area if all they do is flatten tourist now and again -- at least at the rate that appears to be occurring right now in the Miami area...

Even if it's because the people ignore the signals, walk on the track and so forth.  Look at Disney and the alligators for a similar style issue, just for example.

Last year, we took Brightline from Ft. Lauderdale to W. Palm Beach. Nice trains, nice employees, but the ride took 2x the "normal" time to get there. We crawled most of the way for fear of hitting someone. 

This is not good.  Obviously hitting people is bad.  That goes to a degree without saying. They need to solve this problem -- keeping in mind that no system is perfect.  I don't know exactly what the issues are overall ... but partially of course in the ideal they'd have their own corridor ... which they do not have...  fencing and other features to the existing line perhaps can be added.  Again, people should not try to beat the gate and all that, yet people will try because that's what people do -- so maybe the gates can be changed to better protect against that etc...

But if you'd just rather take the car and I'm like this myself, if it's easier and faster to take the car even with taking into account half the time there are traffic jams... then the train will fail.

No matter how idiot proof you make something, someone will build a better idiot.

I wonder if the guy went back for his shoe:

And finally, mass idiocy.  The race is more important than your life:

Rusty

Severn posted:

 

But if you'd just rather take the car and I'm like this myself, if it's easier and faster to take the car even with taking into account half the time there are traffic jams.

Yes. Although you can park your car at a Brightline station garage, you still need a taxi to get where you are going at your destination, unless you work or shop near a station (very unlikely in Ft. Lauderdale, at least). If you are going to Miami Beach, it's a fairly long distance from the station.

As far as the planned Orlando destination goes, you will need a rental car or a hotel/theme park pick-up bus. 

Har, I love that old vid of the riders splitting the field by train.  Anyway -- the stations need to go right where people want to go, or most people.  After that walking, taxi or subway.  Well there's no subway. Finally car rental if you are then going out into the hinterlands.

If we built the Great Walls along the RoW of every track in the country, people would climb over them just to get killed.

I would think gate down activated spike strips might help at car crossings.   Maybe that seems a bit draconian, maybe not.

OK, how many people are killed along the same section of I95 each year?