| Kris |
As of today, we're taking bets to see how long it will take before people realize that "GPS" does not stand for "Auto Pilot." The latest "But the GPS told me to..." story is brought to you by a charter bus driver in Seattle. Piloting a coach through the Washington Arboretum -- as the GPS instructed him -- the driver ignored, or didn't see, or didn't believe (take your pick) the flashing lights and sign warning him that his 11-foot-high bus was too tall for the looming 9-foot concrete overpass.
You can see how the story ends. The overpass ended up with some superficial damage, the coach got a removable top, and the girls softball team inside received some minor injuries. Luckily, the 60-inch sewage pipe inside the overpass wasn't ruptured. The driver was ticketed for $154. And in response to the charter company executive who remarked, "We just thought it would be a safe route because, why else would they have a selection for a bus?", a Garmin spokesman responded "Stoplights aren't in our databases, either, but you're still expected to stop for stoplights." |
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| wa4qfy |
Kris,
Your picture reminded me of this event here in St Louis with low hanging overpasses.
When a somewhat less than brilliant brick truck driver did to an overpass here in St Louis
back on March 25. My guess is he decided not to strap down his boom, or fail to
lower it, hard to say, I don't ever remember his side of the story being reported.
quote:
REF: http://www.kmov.com/localnews/stori...x.2540867c.html
(KMOV) -- MoDOT has reopened part of Eastbound I-64/Highway 40 after an earlier accident forced it to close.
The Spirit of St. Louis Blvd. overpass remains closed.
According to MoDOT, a semi-truck hauling a crane on a trailer struck the overpass while driving under it around 8:30 a.m on Tuesday.
The driver Leroy Daiber, 47, was driving a truck for the Richards Brick Company in Edwardsville, IL.
The truck hit the overpass so hard that it pierced two of the bridge girders.
The boom of the crane was stuck in the overpass for a couple of hours. It was removed just before noon.
No one was injured in the accident, but three other cars that were nearby at the time of the accident were slightly damaged.
The overpass will remain closed as crews evaluate the damage to the bridge, develop plans for the repair and repair the bridge.
It will be several days until experts determine the cost for repairing the bridge
Maybe he was looking at his GPS at the time. ;) |
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| Corin |
This is not the only time that this overpass has claimed a victim like this. This arboretum bridge is very low, and several trucks have had a similar mishap. Of course, because this one involved children, it's getting huge press around here.
The problem is the warning lights are high, and quite a ways back, and not very noticeable (as claimed by previous trucks having this problem). Obviously doesn't excuse the driver not thinking, but it does help explain a bit.
As for blaming a GPS unit for this kind of accident, well, that's just idiotic... :rolleyes: Time to grow a frickin' BRAIN!
It did remind me of this event, though. Gotta love this scene!
http://www.snopes.com/photos/accident/hoecrash.asp |
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