Its NY. We are in general not a patient group. You see people rush the gate all the time so they don't have to wait the 3 minutes. Dumb but reality. On the other MTA line the tracks are not accessible to the road. Its much safer that way.
Its NY. We are in general not a patient group. You see people rush the gate all the time so they don't have to wait the 3 minutes. Dumb but reality. On the other MTA line the tracks are not accessible to the road. Its much safer that way.
I hate that this had to happen but I hope it makes people think twice and that waiting an extra three minutes is worth their lives.
It is hard for me to imagine seeing a train coming and not running away. Even if you can't get your car out of the way, don't you open the door and run like hell. I mean EVEN if it is dark, trains have a light on the front right? I assume the conductor was blowing the horn like crazy too.
I mena obviously I wasn't there I have no clue what happened, but I would just hope I would run away if I saw a train coming! I did learn on the news that if you are stuck and the train is coming you are supposed to run towards the train (like not on the track obviously) but I guess that is the best direction to go to avoid being hit be debries.
If its a quiet zone, they don't have to blow the horn at crossings. By regulation, they do blow the horn at all crossings, and then once the engineer saw the car obscuring the tracks, he would pretty much laid on it. My understanding is that the engineer did see the car and went into emergency braking but that there was just no way for him to stop in time. A train does not stop on a dime.
The crazy thing is that I was reading about this accident and the area sounded familiar. I think the cemetery next to where this happened is where we just went to bury my H's grandfather a few weeks ago.
So this women entered the grade crossing (persumably at a light? traffic back up?) before the gates went down. Then the gates go down, and hit the back of her car - now she is trapped on the grade crossing I presume with the gates down in front and in back?
In any case, it is so tragic and sad. And also why you should never stop on a grade crossing until you are sure that you can clear it.
Post by Velar Fricative on Feb 5, 2015 10:01:11 GMT -5
Here is a Google Street View pic of the crossing (I don't know how it looks with piles of snow):
I would hope the piles of snow weren't so high that they were covering the flashing lights. That's the only potential thing I could think of that would hinder the view of the lights to drivers. And IIRC, gates generally have some sort of illumination for when it's dark. If she didn't see the gates behind her car, there's that other gate facing traffic headed the other direction that I would hope she could have seen (along with that set of lights as well).
Gah. The more I read into this the more questions I have.
I am not familiar with that crossing but if it's dark and confusing I am honestly shocked nothing like this has happened before.
yes we really need more protected crossings (ie, remove grade crossings) for passenger rail. It is safe and will allow the trains to go faster.
Seriously. I live near an at-grade crossing. Not only do the trains need to whistle to warn people near the crossings, but they have to slow down, and when you have crossings every mile or two, you're lucky to get up over 40mph.
Velar, so my guess is that what happened is that the traffic backed up from the light and then this woman stopped on the tracks. I am not sure if she was unfamiliar with the area and that the snow piles obstructed the lights/bucks etc so that she didn't realize she was in the crossing? Because again, you shouldn't stop on the tracks if the traffic is backed up from the light, but my guess is she did.
Both my kids and one of the dogs were in the car everyone was trembling. People are weird and aggressive about the gates and "beating them". Seriously its an extra 3 minutes. Chill Westchester chill.
This is just so weird to me. I mean, what is the point of following another car onto the tracks where you have to stop so that you can get over the tracks the instant that car moves? It's not an intersection, so nobody is going to get in front of you and take your spot. Just wait - if the train doesn't come, you can go over the tracks as soon as the car in front moves and there's space. And if the train does come, you don't want to be on the $!ing tracks!!!
Yes! Exactly! I NEVER stop on tracks. I notice CA drivers are good at following this rule as well as the "don't block the box" rule, as are drivers in my Midwestern hometown that has several train tracks. But Ohio is another story. I never drove in NY...is this a normal thing people do? Stop on tracks at a light?
There's an at grade crossing on my bus route for freight trains and it has no arms at all, just flashing lights. One time the bus almost didn't stop even though the lights were going (it felt like he was starting to gun it and came to his senses). I was freaked out for hours.
This is just so weird to me. I mean, what is the point of following another car onto the tracks where you have to stop so that you can get over the tracks the instant that car moves? It's not an intersection, so nobody is going to get in front of you and take your spot. Just wait - if the train doesn't come, you can go over the tracks as soon as the car in front moves and there's space. And if the train does come, you don't want to be on the $!ing tracks!!!
Yes! Exactly! I NEVER stop on tracks. I notice CA drivers are good at following this rule as well as the "don't block the box" rule, as are drivers in my Midwestern hometown that has several train tracks. But Ohio is another story. I never drove in NY...is this a normal thing people do? Stop on tracks at a light?
You can't count Westchester in "normal" NY. Rushing the gates is routine as is gate malfunction.
This is all so so weird to me. And these were 6 adults? Were they just commuting buddies? Were they coworkers?
If I heard a train I'd be pissing my pants and shoving people to GTF out of the car.
Why is it so weird?
These people were just random commuters. They were all in the first car and they were (GRAPHIC)
decapitated or sliced by the rail that got pulled up from the track and went through the car. There are still a lot of people in the hospital, some critical.
This is all so so weird to me. And these were 6 adults? Were they just commuting buddies? Were they coworkers?
If I heard a train I'd be pissing my pants and shoving people to GTF out of the car.
They weren't all in the car together, people on the train died too.
OH now I understand her comment.
Yes, there was one person in the SUV that was struck, the woman who was driving. The other people killed were in the first train car, not automobile car.
Yup. We have a light rail system in our area. The trains aren't superfast, but they run north to south and go from downtown all the way up through where I live and past it. I cross over MANY of the intersections in any given week. I never ever stop ON the track. during rush hour - I've seen cars ON the track when the gates start to go down.
I understand that people try to rush the gate. I get that concept. But clearly it's really stupid. I'd rather have a car behind me honk and get pissed than chance getting stuck ON the track w/ an oncoming train.
Post by Velar Fricative on Feb 5, 2015 13:14:35 GMT -5
I hadn't read this specific account by the driver behind the driver who was killed:
"There was nobody behind me so I backed up real fast," Hope said. "She gets out of the car, walks over to the gate, grabs the gate, looks at me. I go back and I'm waving at her to come back. She grabs the gate and wiggles it around. And the whole time I'm thinking 'Time's running out here.' She goes around and gets into the car and steps on the gas and goes forward 15 feet, right in front of the train."
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He never mentions that she looks panicked or confused, and if he could see that she looked right at him, he could have detected fear or confusion too. And based on the timeline of events and pictures I've been seeing on the Journal News website, the train was *really* close by the time it crashed into her car, and there was no bend or curve that would have made her not see the train. Plus I have to believe the conductor blew the horn as soon as he saw her and/or the Jeep. When I've stood on the platforms of many different Metro-North stations, if the tracks are straight you can see the lights from a long way back...*especially* at night. I'm just more and more baffled as to what she was doing/thinking during those moments.
I am so confused about these train tracks. How much space was there between the gates?
No clue, but from the street view pic above I can see why they were saying if she hadn't moved forward she probably would have missed the train. If the gate hit the back of her SUV she either would still not have been on the tracks at all or she would have partially been on the southbound track. But once she drove forward she got onto the northbound track.
I am so confused about these train tracks. How much space was there between the gates?
the link in the OP has a picture gallery, you can see how much room there was here. If she was past the gates, there is no way she couldn't see the lights or hear the whistle of this train.
I am so confused about these train tracks. How much space was there between the gates?
the link in the OP has a picture gallery, you can see how much room there was here. If she was past the gates, there is no way she couldn't see the lights or hear the whistle of this train.
Thanks this clears it up. She must have been past the gates, part way onto the tracks going in the other direction, then moved forward onto the wrong tracks.
I still can't understand why people aren't more careful about active train crossings. I cross a local one at least twice a day in the normal course of my day and I always look both ways before I cross no matter what, and I rarely ever see anyone stop on the tracks when traffic backs up.
I am so confused about these train tracks. How much space was there between the gates?
the link in the OP has a picture gallery, you can see how much room there was here. If she was past the gates, there is no way she couldn't see the lights or hear the whistle of this train.
Thanks. Clearly there aren't mounds of snow blocking any lights either. WTF was she thinking? Now I'm angry all over again.
I am so confused about these train tracks. How much space was there between the gates?
the link in the OP has a picture gallery, you can see how much room there was here. If she was past the gates, there is no way she couldn't see the lights or hear the whistle of this train.
I also can't help but note the sign visible in this picture that says DO NOT STOP ON TRACKS.
I hadn't read this specific account by the driver behind the driver who was killed:
"There was nobody behind me so I backed up real fast," Hope said. "She gets out of the car, walks over to the gate, grabs the gate, looks at me. I go back and I'm waving at her to come back. She grabs the gate and wiggles it around. And the whole time I'm thinking 'Time's running out here.' She goes around and gets into the car and steps on the gas and goes forward 15 feet, right in front of the train."
--------------
He never mentions that she looks panicked or confused, and if he could see that she looked right at him, he could have detected fear or confusion too. And based on the timeline of events and pictures I've been seeing on the Journal News website, the train was *really* close by the time it crashed into her car, and there was no bend or curve that would have made her not see the train. Plus I have to believe the conductor blew the horn as soon as he saw her and/or the Jeep. When I've stood on the platforms of many different Metro-North stations, if the tracks are straight you can see the lights from a long way back...*especially* at night. I'm just more and more baffled as to what she was doing/thinking during those moments.
Man. This dude is going to have to tell this story SO many times.
Post by changedname on Feb 5, 2015 13:49:37 GMT -5
Do you think she didn't back up because she didn't want to damage her car by smashing through the gate? That why she was wiggling it? To try and lift it up?
the link in the OP has a picture gallery, you can see how much room there was here. If she was past the gates, there is no way she couldn't see the lights or hear the whistle of this train.
I also can't help but note the sign visible in this picture that says DO NOT STOP ON TRACKS.
And the clearly demarcated white stop line on the ground. Whether or not she could see the arm, if she was stopped she should have made sure to stop behind that line.
This is terrible speculation, but I can't help but wonder if alcohol or some other substances were involved that led to impairment of judgment.
Regardless, it's terribly sad.
It's possible, although I think she was on her way from work.
That area of Westchester can be confusing as fuck while driving at night.
I had read she was coming from work, but as the daughter of two recovering alcoholics, that means very little to me. My parents drank at work and on their way home from work a lot.
I've not driven in the area, so it may well be that it is confusing, but as others have pointed out, it was very clear that the train was coming and that the bar was behind her car. Her perceived lack of alarm or urgency is what makes me question whether or not she had all of her senses about her.
But, again, I am not from the area so it may well be that this is just a case of poorly marked or ill functioning safety features.
This is terrible speculation, but I can't help but wonder if alcohol or some other substances were involved that led to impairment of judgment.
Regardless, it's terribly sad.
Or a cell phone.
Yup. This was my first thought when I heard how nonchalant she appeared to to the driver behind her when she got out of her car. She was not at all aware of her surroundings which screams "distraction!" to me.
I also can't help but note the sign visible in this picture that says DO NOT STOP ON TRACKS.
And the clearly demarcated white stop line on the ground. Whether or not she could see the arm, if she was stopped she should have made sure to stop behind that line.
Such a sad situation.
She might not have seen the clearly demarcated white stop line on the ground. We have had a LOT of snow in my area and the roads are covered with ice and snow so that you still can't see pavement on many roads.
I do wonder if she was wiggling the gate because she was trying to figure if she could lift it up to back up, but once she couldn't, she thought she would drive forwards and through that gate?
I think she was either confused or suicidal. We won't know which.