Ventura county California, AGAIN!
http://abc7.com/news/amtrak-train-hits-vehicle-stuck-on-tracks-in-camarillo/540076/

CAMARILLO, Calif. (KABC) --
An Amtrak train with 85 people on board hit a vehicle that was stuck on the tracks near Pleasant Valley Road and Fifth Street in Camarillo Sunday, the Ventura County Sheriff's Department said. No injuries were reported.

Deputies say the two occupants of the vehicle exited the car before it was hit by the train at about 8 p.m., just a few miles away from the site of last week's derailment.

The vehicle ended up in a ditch following the collision. The passengers on board the train are currently being assessed by emergency personnel.

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http://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/amtrak-train-collides-rig-north-carolina-injuries-unclear-n320076

40 Injured When Amtrak Train Collides With Truck in North Carolina

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http://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/amtrak-train-collides-rig-north-carolina-injuries-unclear-n320076

40 Injured When Amtrak Train Collides With Truck in North Carolina

Since the police were already there, or were escorting the truck according to one report I saw, they should have called the railroad immediately.

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David
Sitting on my butt while others boldly go,
Waiting for a message from a small furry creature from Alpha Centauri.

http://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/amtrak-train-collides-rig-north-carolina-injuries-unclear-n320076

40 Injured When Amtrak Train Collides With Truck in North Carolina

Since the police were already there, or were escorting the truck according to one report I saw, they should have called the railroad immediately.

They may have placed a call, but frankly I've heard many RR's aren't set up to radio a warning quickly. Sometimes because XYZ street crossing isn't listed as milepost 12.3.

Report I saw was the police were dispatched there because the truck had been stuck for at least 15 minutes blocking vehicle traffic. I might understand the police dispatcher waiting until the officer got on scene to verify if the tracks were blocked, but ..... It will be part of the investigation. I'm sure some procedure manuals are going to get a rewrite.

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http://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/amtrak-train-collides-rig-north-carolina-injuries-unclear-n320076

40 Injured When Amtrak Train Collides With Truck in North Carolina

Since the police were already there, or were escorting the truck according to one report I saw, they should have called the railroad immediately.

They may have placed a call, but frankly I've heard many RR's aren't set up to radio a warning quickly. Sometimes because XYZ street crossing isn't listed as milepost 12.3.

Report I saw was the police were dispatched there because the truck had been stuck for at least 15 minutes blocking vehicle traffic. I might understand the police dispatcher waiting until the officer got on scene to verify if the tracks were blocked, but ..... It will be part of the investigation. I'm sure some procedure manuals are going to get a rewrite.

The crossing signal control shed will always have not only the phone number to call but also a unique ID number for the crossing. That will tell the railroad which dispatcher to notify, and he will contact any trains in the area.

(I did see a crossing recently that was just crossbucks, no active signals. It still had a sign with a phone number and the exact description of the crossing to give.)

Someone is definitely going to get fired, or at least disciplined, for this, and the only people I'm sure it won't be are the Amtrak crew.

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David
Sitting on my butt while others boldly go,
Waiting for a message from a small furry creature from Alpha Centauri.

Maybe we need to start a new topic titled "Darwin Awards Nominees or Winners"

"In the spirit of Charles Darwin, the Darwin Awards commemorate individuals who protect our gene pool by making the ultimate sacrifice of their own lives. Darwin Award winners eliminate themselves in an extraordinarily idiotic manner, thereby improving our species' chances of long-term survival."

Woman allegedly texting walks into moving freight train:
A Florida woman, who witnesses say appeared to be texting, survives after walking straight into a passing train.

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Maybe we need to start a new topic titled "Darwin Awards Nominees or Winners"

"In the spirit of Charles Darwin, the Darwin Awards commemorate individuals who protect our gene pool by making the ultimate sacrifice of their own lives. Darwin Award winners eliminate themselves in an extraordinarily idiotic manner, thereby improving our species' chances of long-term survival."

Woman allegedly texting walks into moving freight train:
A Florida woman, who witnesses say appeared to be texting, survives after walking straight into a passing train.

Then she failed to win a Darwin award.

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David
Sitting on my butt while others boldly go,
Waiting for a message from a small furry creature from Alpha Centauri.

http://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/amtrak-train-collides-rig-north-carolina-injuries-unclear-n320076

40 Injured When Amtrak Train Collides With Truck in North Carolina

Since the police were already there, or were escorting the truck according to one report I saw, they should have called the railroad immediately.

They may have placed a call, but frankly I've heard many RR's aren't set up to radio a warning quickly. Sometimes because XYZ street crossing isn't listed as milepost 12.3.

Report I saw was the police were dispatched there because the truck had been stuck for at least 15 minutes blocking vehicle traffic. I might understand the police dispatcher waiting until the officer got on scene to verify if the tracks were blocked, but ..... It will be part of the investigation. I'm sure some procedure manuals are going to get a rewrite.

The crossing signal control shed will always have not only the phone number to call but also a unique ID number for the crossing. That will tell the railroad which dispatcher to notify, and he will contact any trains in the area.

(I did see a crossing recently that was just crossbucks, no active signals. It still had a sign with a phone number and the exact description of the crossing to give.)

Someone is definitely going to get fired, or at least disciplined, for this, and the only people I'm sure it won't be are the Amtrak crew.

The trucking company filed a plan for this movement with the state DOT. The state police say it was the responsibility of the company to notify the railroad, NOT the troopers who were escorting the truck and therefore already on the scene before the train came along. FRA and NTSB are looking into it. Operation Lifesaver seems to have gotten their point into the media that people need to be more aware of crossing safety.

---

David
Sitting on my butt while others boldly go,
Waiting for a message from a small furry creature from Alpha Centauri.

http://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/amtrak-train-collides-rig-north-carolina-injuries-unclear-n320076

40 Injured When Amtrak Train Collides With Truck in North Carolina

Since the police were already there, or were escorting the truck according to one report I saw, they should have called the railroad immediately.

They may have placed a call, but frankly I've heard many RR's aren't set up to radio a warning quickly. Sometimes because XYZ street crossing isn't listed as milepost 12.3.

Report I saw was the police were dispatched there because the truck had been stuck for at least 15 minutes blocking vehicle traffic. I might understand the police dispatcher waiting until the officer got on scene to verify if the tracks were blocked, but ..... It will be part of the investigation. I'm sure some procedure manuals are going to get a rewrite.

The crossing signal control shed will always have not only the phone number to call but also a unique ID number for the crossing. That will tell the railroad which dispatcher to notify, and he will contact any trains in the area.

(I did see a crossing recently that was just crossbucks, no active signals. It still had a sign with a phone number and the exact description of the crossing to give.)

Someone is definitely going to get fired, or at least disciplined, for this, and the only people I'm sure it won't be are the Amtrak crew.

The trucking company filed a plan for this movement with the state DOT. The state police say it was the responsibility of the company to notify the railroad, NOT the troopers who were escorting the truck and therefore already on the scene before the train came along. FRA and NTSB are looking into it. Operation Lifesaver seems to have gotten their point into the media that people need to be more aware of crossing safety.

I keep reading it was a police escort, but http://www.oversizeloadescorts.com/regs/regs.php?s=nc does not indicate a police escort is required, just private escort. Not saying his particular permit did not have that as an additional requirement.

Interestingly the regulations say the truck driver and escort drivers must have radio communications, but there is no requirement for anyone to even have a cell phone to call 911 or a RR. If they aren't required to have a communication method to call a RR then ....?

---

http://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/amtrak-train-collides-rig-north-carolina-injuries-unclear-n320076

40 Injured When Amtrak Train Collides With Truck in North Carolina

Since the police were already there, or were escorting the truck according to one report I saw, they should have called the railroad immediately.

They may have placed a call, but frankly I've heard many RR's aren't set up to radio a warning quickly. Sometimes because XYZ street crossing isn't listed as milepost 12.3.

Report I saw was the police were dispatched there because the truck had been stuck for at least 15 minutes blocking vehicle traffic. I might understand the police dispatcher waiting until the officer got on scene to verify if the tracks were blocked, but ..... It will be part of the investigation. I'm sure some procedure manuals are going to get a rewrite.

The crossing signal control shed will always have not only the phone number to call but also a unique ID number for the crossing. That will tell the railroad which dispatcher to notify, and he will contact any trains in the area.

(I did see a crossing recently that was just crossbucks, no active signals. It still had a sign with a phone number and the exact description of the crossing to give.)

Someone is definitely going to get fired, or at least disciplined, for this, and the only people I'm sure it won't be are the Amtrak crew.

The trucking company filed a plan for this movement with the state DOT. The state police say it was the responsibility of the company to notify the railroad, NOT the troopers who were escorting the truck and therefore already on the scene before the train came along. FRA and NTSB are looking into it. Operation Lifesaver seems to have gotten their point into the media that people need to be more aware of crossing safety.

I keep reading it was a police escort, but http://www.oversizeloadescorts.com/regs/regs.php?s=nc does not indicate a police escort is required, just private escort. Not saying his particular permit did not have that as an additional requirement.

Interestingly the regulations say the truck driver and escort drivers must have radio communications, but there is no requirement for anyone to even have a cell phone to call 911 or a RR. If they aren't required to have a communication method to call a RR then ....?

They should have included notifying the railroad in the route plan in the first place.

---

David
Sitting on my butt while others boldly go,
Waiting for a message from a small furry creature from Alpha Centauri.

They should have included notifying the railroad in the route plan in the first place.

That would be the North Carolina Department of Transportation, as they pick the route.

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Surely the whole reason it had an escort was because it was a large load that was likely to cause problems. Did whoever planned the route not notice the railroad crossing?

Seems it was an accident just waiting to happen and it did.

That is going to cost someone a lot of money!!

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I've just heard an advert on Absolute 80's radio station:
If you see a red X on the motorway, it means that lane is closed. Traffic should move right or left to another lane if safe to do so.

Do enough people not know that for the powers that be to feel the need to put an advert on the radio?

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Life on earth is the global equivalent of not storing things in the fridge.

I've just heard an advert on Absolute 80's radio station:
If you see a red X on the motorway, it means that lane is closed. Traffic should move right or left to another lane if safe to do so.

Do enough people not know that for the powers that be to feel the need to put an advert on the radio?

'fraid so.

Here in California (yeah, I know, we're not like the rest of the world...) they run a radio, TV, & billboard campaign called "Slow for the Cone Zone". Remind people to slow down in roadwork zones.

And "Slow or move left" for emergency & law enforcement vehicles on the shoulder with lights flashing. Although if the terrain allows, many cops will come up on the passenger side, to avoid exposing themselves to traffic.

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Donald
Infernal Optimist / Submariner, retired

Here in Illinois, they run "friendly" ads reminding you to slow down in construction zones. They also tried "unfriendly" ones featuring the little kids of actual construction workers who won't be going home to them anymore because they were killed by a careless motorist. Those aren't running lately.

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David
Sitting on my butt while others boldly go,
Waiting for a message from a small furry creature from Alpha Centauri.

I would have thought that the 20 mph limit in London won't make a lot of difference to average speeds druring busy times, the last average speed figures I saw were about 7 or 8 mph If I remember correctly. I'm not convinced it'll significantly change the Bike rider injury rate either.

I've always thought that re-educating bike riders would make the biggest difference to the death rates. From what Ive seen over the years, the biggest danger to bike riders is themselves ignoring common sense and the rules of the road. This, of course, applies to a small, but significant, proportion of riders.

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Happy Crunching,

Graham

I would have thought that the 20 mph limit in London won't make a lot of difference to average speeds druring busy times, the last average speed figures I saw were about 7 or 8 mph If I remember correctly. I'm not convinced it'll significantly change the Bike rider injury rate either.

I've always thought that re-educating bike riders would make the biggest difference to the death rates. From what Ive seen over the years, the biggest danger to bike riders is themselves ignoring common sense and the rules of the road. This, of course, applies to a small, but significant, proportion of riders.

+1

As seen from the comments made in the link that Chris provided - It seems that many cyclists feel that speed limit & other vehicular regulations do not cover them. Think they need to brush up on the Highway Code & the Road Traffic Act!

As for the 20mph speed limit throughout London, that's all good & well as most of the time, it's practically impossible to get above 15/20mph.

However, should the local councils start changing the sensors on speed cameras, that will cause major problems causing your shopping costs to rise - think about it.

Slight change of tack.....
The other day I sat for about an hour waiting to take off... watching the bird scare crew clear a flock of birds from the runway, one plane took off, birds returned, bird scare crew came back and the birds flew off; repeat, repeat; repeat. Eventually bird scare crew decided to change tack and netted the flock of birds - lots of feathers, no birds flying around, lots of planes taking off...


(Netting was done with what might best be described as a vehicle launched air-borne version of a seine net)

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Bob Smith
Member of Seti PIPPS (Pluto is a Planet Protest Society)
Somewhere in the (un)known Universe?

Slight change of tack.....
The other day I sat for about an hour waiting to take off... watching the bird scare crew clear a flock of birds from the runway, one plane took off, birds returned, bird scare crew came back and the birds flew off; repeat, repeat; repeat. Eventually bird scare crew decided to change tack and netted the flock of birds - lots of feathers, no birds flying around, lots of planes taking off...

(Netting was done with what might best be described as a vehicle launched air-borne version of a seine net)

Hark! Learning takes place!

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Donald
Infernal Optimist / Submariner, retired