The law presumes you can read English! How did you get your license to drive if you do not know what the signs mean?
What you all are saying makes my point. Why is there a need to add a yield sign to a crossbuck because drivers don’t know that a crossbuck means yield?
Like all signage, the full meaning is spelled out in the law books. Drivers are expected to know those laws, and will be prosecuted for breaking them.
Time to bring back the “Death” siren crossing.
It seems that eachPoster has made an assumption> that THE PUBLIC is able to read and understand English < [Still the “legal” language in this country [soapbox]
.{ --except for Lawyers who must show their ‘intelligence’ by spouting words and phrases in Latin.] [banghead]
I can remember when the word STOP was embossed in the red lense on traffic signals…even some traffic signals that had paddles
Sam:
“Railroads will have Highway/Rail Grade Crossing accidents, as long as individuals are given licenses like they were prizes in breakfast cereal boxes.”
Back in the early '70’s when I worked at the La. Dept. of Public Safety computer center, I commented to the supervisor that the new written test they had just come out with was ridiculously simple. His answer was, “If we made it any harder, some people wouldn’t be able to pass it.”
Going back to people being able to read, it’s not that they can’t read, but that they don’t read. I still contend that people pre-program themselves to react to stop signs, traffic lights and other cars and maybe yield signs, then turn their minds off while they drive with a cup of coffee in one hand, a doughnut in the other hand, a cell phone in the other hand, and the other hand is tuning the radio. I can’t talk any more about people’s driving: my blood pressure is going up.
Time to start eliminating or upgrade grade crossings. Appears the NC DOT is identifying and doing this faster than any other state on a percentage basis ?
Some of the posters are making the rash assumption that all drivers on the road actually have licenses. Ever lived in an area with a lot of illegal immigrants? No driver’s licenses, definitely no insurance, and in too many cases very little or no English.
It isn’t just illegals, either. There are a fair number of drivers who have had their licenses suspended or revoked (often for DUI) but continue to drive, usually in a less than safe manner.
Paul: To what you said, and I highlighted… I could only add a BIG “AMEN” [bow]
Preoccupation seems to be the rule for drivers these days…Too much going within, and without of automobiles. At accident scenes where one encounters a driver who has hit the middle of a rtrain at a crossing, or ignored the loud blowing of a air horn… They usually pre
It never ceases to amaze me how many of the folks the cops pull over are “suspended or revoked” for some reason or another (usually failure to pay a fine). It’s like they never learn!
It doesn’t take external interference to become distracted. I’ve been known to get so involved in some mental project that I suddenly realize that I have no memory of the past several miles… Scary.
I do find that while fiddling with this device or another is momentarily distracting (and that’s all it takes), having other people in the vehicle is far worse.
I have seen plenty of “stop here on red light” signs to tell drivers not to venture so far that they block the cross street’s turning traffic.
Will you explain all those hands in the 3rd half of the show?
Patrick, have you noticed that almost every traffic light cycle, there is a vehicle that’s stopped way past the “Stop here on red light” sign? Down here there are several signs next to the traffic lights that say “no turn on red” and there are cars constantly turning on red.
As for all those hands, I can’t explain it, but their existence may explain how athletes are able to give 110% or 200% effort.
Bumping this topic with respect to quiet zones and proper signage to make their crossings ‘as safe’ as they would be with horn use.
I recently came across a somewhat ‘better’ proposal for signage, as part of this interesting blog post (name suppressed to keep knee-jerk response neutralized). This is a modification of the $1500 fine sign that’s been mentioned previously…
Seems better than hydraulic rams out of the pavement, or a harpoon system that immobilizes the car … after it’s gotten safely over the crossing, two options which were discussed in the blog comments.
If part of QZ safety includes full enforcement – and I think it does – just what steps toward 100% integrity against crossing infringement should municipalities take?
To quote in part from Overmod:
“…If part of QZ safety includes full enforcement – and I think it does – just what steps toward 100% integrity against crossing infringement should municipalities take?..”
I still think that the real answer is to equip Locomotives with a Klingon Disrupter, controlled by the Engineer [4:-)] … Problems solved [:-,] …No need for motorists to know, or understand English; or to be paying attention while driving…Maybe, the Conductor could pass out Darwin Awards to those so ‘Disrupted’. [^o)]