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NTSB releases factual report regarding fatal Amtrak-truck collision
In other words, Amtrak and BNSF did nothing wrong and the trucking company’s suit against them is nothing but a smoke screen to avoid liability.
Odds are, the crossing gate timing is set up for everything but large trucks, which clearly demonstrated in this instance that trucks require a much greater advance warning in order to stop safely. Of course, laws are written by idiots who drive sports cars and touring cars. They have no clue when it comes to the laws of motion. Or we can just take all the trucks off the road and let the fallout happen. That fallout would be no fuel at the pump and no food at the grocery store. But that is OK. It is the good intention that counts.
Hmmmmm…Seems like all this could have been determined on June 24, 2011!
300’ skid mark terminating at the crossing(!). How fast was this truck going?
J. Guse: Say what? Your rant is incomprehensible and pointless. Are you blaming the railroad for this inexcusable incident? (I won’t call it an accident because it wasn’t.) Trucks are important to our economy, certainly. But the truck involved in this incident was not, I repeat, not a vital part of the US commerce, as you imply. It was pure stupidity on the part of the truck driver.
It was pretty obviously the truck driver’s fault. On obvious circumstances like that it’s ridiculous how long it takes for investigation to happen.
iT TOOK NTSB MORE THAN A YEAR TO DEVELOP THESE FINDINGS! NO WONDER THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT CAN ONLY GENERATE DEBT!
I don’t understand Mr. Guse’s suggestion. Since the gates are operated by the train activating the circuit in advance of the crossing, the design is to ensure the gates are closed before the train reaches the crossing based on the maximum permissible speed of the train. Has nothing to do with speed of vehicles on the road.
While my policy of late, and I hope everyone else will join me, has been to just ignore the Silly Guse, I must observe in this case that he has apparently forgotten that the truck in question was one of three traveling together and the other two managed to stop in a safe and timely manner, and did not leave any skidmarks on the road.
Given his repeated anti Amtrak and other political comments, Mr.Guss should restrict himself to sending
letters to the right wing publications and TRAINS should
censor his publication rantings.
As a police officer with specialized collision training, I’ve investigated about a dozen grade crossing collisions over the years and literally thousands of other collisions. What is most telling here is the braking distance of the truck. 299 feet is astounding. If that’s true, that truck was certainly travelling well over the speed limit. Gates come down, dependent on train speed, with more than enough time for vehicles traveling at legal speed to stop. Considering the other trucks had already stopped, this is certainly driver error or a medical condition. Guse is WAY off.
About the only info was the “sight distance” in that location. In videos it looked like nothing would interfere with any driver not seeing a train in that area so it is the truck drivers fault because , as others noted , the other two trucks avoided the accident. As to trucks and safety there is many truck drivers that modify their braking systems so that the front wheels have the brakes disconnected in the mistaken idea that it prevents a the vehicle from jack knifing. The end result is with fewer wheels stopping when the brakes are applied it takes a longer distance to stop.
As for J. Guse I’m glad others have noted that he is against all forms of rail transportation.
Yeah, well, whatever. I’ve been through that crossing a number of times and the visibility from the highway is as good as it gets. The trucking company is engaged in what old soldiers called the best defense being an offense. That truck was the lead unit of a three truck convoy running south on US 95, and the drivers of the following units blurted out the truth before the lawyers for the trucking company could muzzle them. They both said they were horrified to see the lead driver going full speed right toward the crossing even as they were slowing down. And did I mention that all three units were running empty, meaning that braking was even more difficult than if they had been fully loaded? The truck driver, for whatever reasons or non-reasons, dunnit. We will never know what they were because he died. So sad that others also died.
Mr. Guse comments speak for themselves.
Mr. Guse comments speak for themselves.
Usually grade crossing protection is automatically activated 25-35 seconds uniformly before train arrival time at the crossing if an automatic comtrol device such as a Grade Crossing Predictor (GCP) is used. If fixed length, but variable time, control is relied upon then the fixed distance is st at the maximum time and distance for a train being operated at maximum track speed. That is the crossing warning devices would be activated immediately upon the train entering the track circuit defining the approach distance to the crossing.
Having gone over that particular crossing many times, looking for trains (I am a foamer and proud of it), you can see for miles in either direction. Also, I have “flown” over this grade crossing, in many different vehicles, comfortably at 75 mph as it is very smooth. Rule #1, if your relative position does not change you are on a collision course.
Approach circuits vary depending on the class of track, however the one common is that gates need to be down at least 30 seconds before passage of a train.
As one a bit right of center I find Dr. Vander Kooi’s suggestion that Guse write to right wing publications almost as presumptive in their stated intent as those of his intended insultee’s.