Well, I hate to say this, but I guess we can assume stupidity crosses all human beings at one time or another. A firetruck truck was waiting at a grade Crossing when the freight train ambled on by instead of waiting for the gates to go up, the fire truck went around the gates and was struck by the high speed, bright line passenger train obliterating the firetruck. Fortunately, there were no fatalities. When will people learn? Wait for the gate.
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@ThatGuy posted:Well, I hate to say this, but I guess we can assume stupidity crosses all human beings at one time or another. A firetruck truck was waiting at a grade Crossing when the freight train ambled on by instead of waiting for the gates to go up, the fire truck went around the gates and was struck by the high speed, bright line passenger train obliterating the firetruck. Fortunately, there were no fatalities. When will people learn? Wait for the gate.
Fortunately Brightline released the cab-camera footage of the accident which clearly shows that the gates were down at the time of the accident.
I live down here in Florida in Palm Beach County and hear about the frequent grade crossing accidents on both routes (FEC/Brightline and CSX/Amtrak/Tri-Rail). While it may not stop all of these accidents, I feel that because of the general stupidity of many drivers down here that all crossings should be converted to quad gate arrangements to prevent (or at least make it more difficult) to cross the tracks when the trains are coming.
Stuart
Interesting 2023 statistics on crossing accidents, FLA is #4 down the list of the 25 that represent 84% of all crossing incidents. Don't know why NC is on the list if Western NC is any indications, trains are almost non-existent here, not counting the fact that Helene left all trackage destroyed.
It's sad to say, but they need to 'over-protect' because there are just too many out there that do not use 'common sense' when they are out in public! Consider highway drivine - look at how many places now have lanes for turning left - and without an 'arrow' you cannot - even if there's not another car in sight! Why? Because too many 'idiots' thought they could beat the car (or, in cases of railroad crossings, beat the train!).
Quad gates - that'll stop ALL from sneaking around - unless there's another idiot that thinks he can beat the train - and then there will be more uproar about how unsafe railroads are. I have heard people calling the 'Brightline' system the 'Death Train' - as if it is THEIR fault!!!!!
As so many have said: YOU CAN'T FIX STUPID!
@CALNNC posted:Interesting 2023 statistics on crossing accidents, FLA is #4 down the list of the 25 that represent 84% of all crossing incidents. Don't know why NC is on the list if Western NC is any indications, trains are almost non-existent here, not counting the fact that Helene left all trackage destroyed.
I would venture to guess that since eastern North Carolina is on the main North/South passenger line is why it is on the list!
@Stuart posted:Fortunately Brightline released the cab-camera footage of the accident which clearly shows that the gates were down at the time of the accident.
I live down here in Florida in Palm Beach County and hear about the frequent grade crossing accidents on both routes (FEC/Brightline and CSX/Amtrak/Tri-Rail). While it may not stop all of these accidents, I feel that because of the general stupidity of many drivers down here that all crossings should be converted to quad gate arrangements to prevent (or at least make it more difficult) to cross the tracks when the trains are coming.
Stuart
I am with you on this one, once again the crew is the one if they survive and this time they did to live with the accident. This is a good example of stupidity and arrogance coming together to form a human. Why do I have to wait? Why you may ask? The video is the answer, red flashing lights/bells/gates have a meaning and it’s not I know better. I am beginning to really believe Florida is really Flori-DA.
happy new year to all!
In the Brightline cab video, it appears that the DOT did install a divider with bollards between the travel lanes to prevent drive-arounds. Unfortunately this doesn't stop the fire truck that came up the wrong side of the road to be able to move when the gates went up.......
OH WAIT! THE GATES DIDN'T GO UP YET! 
Ironically, the crossing just before the accident scene is double gated.
I've seen videos on YT of this same sort of accident with first responders going around downed gates and getting smashed by a second train.
Fortunately no one was killed, hopefully the call that the FD was heading for didn't end in tragedy because of the driver's error.
Bob
I don't know what those firefighters were thinking, but I don't consider them as being stupid. Having a brain fart (or more correctly a lapse in judgement) has killed many good people. I have been in the special operations and emergency services areas for most of my life, and I have seen overconfidence (running into that burning building to save someone, landing the helo in a tight space to pick up the ground team under fire) or focusing too much on getting there quickly before more life is lost, result in disaster. I am sure those firefighters are more than capable of thoughtful decision-making, but "in the heat of the battle" one sometimes does not consider all the potential consequences of their actions. Fortunately in this case, unlike other examples I can give, no one died.
Brightline does statistically have a lot of crossing gate incidents and pedestrian deaths. The rail lines running through heavily populated areas in the Northeast for example have been around a lot longer with a whole lot more traffic until recently, meaning that they've had many decades of being hardened with razor wire-topped fencing, double gating at crossings, and other stuff like tunnels and bridges which prevent or outright eliminate people and vehicles from coming into contact with the ROW at all.
Florida by comparison has a lot more grade crossings and large sections of unfettered access to the tracks, along with massive population growth. As Brightline has dramatically expanded service over the last decade or so, it's put high speed rail into places that previously didn't have it, or at least not a lot of traffic. This is the biggest reason by far for the higher incident rate.
I'm down here in FL and I saw this on the news. Come on people, why should you need a million fail-safe items for train crossings? Why did the driver know better than the signals? Based on the news, this fire truck wasn't answering an emergency. The driver alone put all the other firemen on the truck at risk. WHY? What gave him the right to do that? THE TRAIN ALWAYS WINS. And aside from any injuries, what was the economic cost of this? How much does a fire truck cost? How much does it cost to repair a train engine? YOU CAN'T FIX STUPID!
Gerry
Had something similar happen in Bluefield Va in either late 1980 or early 1981, five boys waiting for the train to go by at the Depot St. crossing. The first train passed by and they went running across just as it passed not waiting for the gate. They obviously didn't know about the other train coming down the other track, 3 of them didn't make. Always wait for the gate whether you are walking or driving.
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