Driver Blames GPS For Driving On Railroad Tracks, Getting Hit By Train
from the common-sense? dept
What is it about turning on a GPS system that makes people lose just about any bit of common sense they may have had? Last year, we wrote about a woman who blamed her GPS device for getting her into a train accident. You see, the GPS device told her to go straight, even though there was a gate blocking the train tracks. Now we've got a similar case. As pointed out by the folks over at the Tech Liberation Front, a California man who was in New York for work, and driving a rental car, apparently turned onto the railroad tracks for the MetroNorth line because his GPS told him to turn. To his credit, the guy eventually realized that maybe the tracks weren't where he was supposed to turn, but he was unable to get his rental Ford Focus to reverse back down the tracks. At that point he "abandoned" the car, leaving it for the next train to hit. At least the MetroNorth spokesperson seems to have a sense of humor about the whole thing. When talking about how the guy tried to warn the oncoming train, he deadpanned: "He tried to stop the train by waving his arms, which apparently was not totally effective in slowing the train." Not totally effective indeed. When noting that the driver worked in the computer field, the spokesman also noted: "One computer brain listening to another." Time to reprogram some of the logic, however.
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Filed Under: driving directions, gps, trains
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The challenge...
So here's the deal- The GPS doesn't drive the car. The Person Does. A GPS is a tool to assist a person, much like a map. So GPS data is usually sourced from the USGS TIGER system and local municipalities which typically submit the data once a year and compiled by NavTech or TeleAtlas. Because of logistics, it takes at least a year for the data to get to NavTech or TeleAtlas.
So the owner of the GPS should perform due diligence, and purchase an update (Which is synonymous with buying a new map) yearly to have the most current information.
Also, a person with common sense should still drive the car, not blindly follow directions from a GPS!
If a GPS told me to turn onto a train track, something would tell me I'm in the wrong place, and turn around... FAST. But that's just me.
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Re: The challenge...
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Re: Re: The challenge...
I think not.
The perfectly sensible thing to do is to notice that your GPS is asking you to turn on to tracks and say no thanks, and keep going.
Not to turn on to said tracks and then realize you'd screwed up.
Course that's me being sensible.
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Re: The challenge...
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Re: The challenge...
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Re:
Let me make a correction to this.
Guns (or Trains) don't kill people, STUPID people get themselves killed and cause severe harm to those around them not smart enough to spot the really stupid ones and move out of the way!!
;-)
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Re: Re:
Guns Don't Kill People Rappers Do ;-)
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gps and trains
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Re: gps and trains
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GPS control
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Train 0 - GPS 1
I always root for the train...
better luck next time
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Re: Train 0 - GPS 1
The train won man... the train ALWAYS wins.
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Re: Re: Train 0 - GPS 1
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Re: Re: Train 0 - GPS 1
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You've got to be kidding me
I think there is just entirely too much idiocy behind the wheel. Both of these individuals should have their licenses revoked for being incapable of making sound decisions!
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train wreck
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Rediculous
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well...
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re: gps and trains
I must have missed something...
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HE'S RIGHT!
http://fakesteveballmer.blogspot.com
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AI
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Re: AI
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Ya, dis has nothing to do about GPS, but it makes you wonder if the "HAL" is really giving the directions!
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They Shouldn't Be Driving
A uniform screening of new drivers would benefit this country immensely. If someone can't pass the screening, they would be required to take a driver education course that would last six months or more. And, they would have to pay for it - no state subsidies here.
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Natural Selection
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Neverlost
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Tele Atlas actually uses special camera vans to ch
We bought a Tom Tom based upon their recommend and it has worked pretty well. Sure, not 100%, but their data seems better than the competition from my use.
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Re: Tele Atlas actually uses special camera vans t
We bought a Tom Tom based upon their recommend and it has worked pretty well. Sure, not 100%, but their data seems better than the competition from my use.
A lot of effort goes into compiling, maintaining and "mashing up" the GIS data. Some of it is from the Government, local, state, or national authorities such as planning and public works, some from public sources, others by drive testing. In the case of Google Maps, there's images and geodata brought in by the likes of NASA, DigitalGlobe, et al.
For example, have you ever wondered why your GPS thinks the interstate ends in 1/2 mile, then when you cross a magic spot, it says to keep going on the interstate for another 10 miles? Chances are, this is where one set of data merged with another.
So there's a lot of small pieces that contribute to the whole, and local-level data dependencies that maybe aren't shared with GIS companies like NavTech and TeleAtlas, and the process relies heavily on MapInfo. Once you have the map polygons, vector files can be cut, and POI data can be added.
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Re: Re: Tele Atlas actually uses special camera va
It does that because the interstate splits to another interstate or main highway.
This story is hysterical and sad to say the least. What a moron.
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GPS
My main question would be, Why does anyone need a GPS to drive a car? Are people getting dumber, or just leaving their brains in their other pants? If you can not think for yourself and decide where you need to go, don't walk or drive, NO GPS NEEDED if you have a brain, with the possible exception of on the Oceans of the world.
I guess like animals, some humans need a leash to keep track of them, and that is all GPS does is keep track of the dumb ones.
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I get it now. He must have guessed the railroad tracks were the shoulder!
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technology and psycology
So here's the deal- The GPS doesn't drive the car. The Person Does. A GPS is a tool to assist a person, much like a map. So GPS data is usually sourced from the USGS TIGER system and local municipalities which typically submit the data once a year and compiled by NavTech or TeleAtlas. Because of logistics, it takes at least a year for the data to get to NavTech or TeleAtlas.
So the owner of the GPS should perform due diligence, and purchase an update (Which is synonymous with buying a new map) yearly to have the most current information.
>>>>>>
Also, a person with common sense should still drive the car, not blindly follow directions from a GPS!
If a GPS told me to turn onto a train track, something would tell me I'm in the wrong place, and turn around... FAST. But that's just me.
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GPS causing accidents.
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Re: GPS causing accidents.
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Terrain and Map
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Re:
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Re: Joe Smith
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Re:GPS Causing Accidents
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the Office...
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Lost Highway
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Let's fix the problem -
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Cell phones, Driving, and GPS and Deadly Combinati
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GPS has loads of bright ideas
I personally find it great for getting places but you still need to know how to drive in the first place, and that includes road signs!
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GPS 'N TRAINS
Does the evolution of the human brain seem to be in a backwards spiral? Or has humanity always had people who are proving that evolution of "thought" hasn't kept up with the evolution of the body.
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Wife (ex)
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Re: Wife (ex)
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Re: Re: Wife (ex)
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GPS
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Re: GPS
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Re: GPS
_____
Sorry, I haven't seen The Office since Jeff "da Sucker" Zucker pulled it from iTunes. Thanks, Zucker! I bet the script the writers worked on made it as funny as you wanted it to be.
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Lame brains
He's never had that much sense anyhow, though.
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Re: Lame brains
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train always won
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Michael Scott anyone?
IMPOSTER? POSER? ACTOR? or just a freaking tard?
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Sometimes you do drive up the tracks....
The first time the warehouse guy told me how to get there, he had to really work to convince me to look for a set of tracks and drive up them!
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Re:
We need diversity.
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This is the reason....
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Re: Re: GPS
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Automated Trains
I am working to automate iron ore trains, the longest (>3.5Km) and heaviest (>50K tonnes) trains in the world.
Luckily they are out in the middle of nowhere, at least a 24 hour drive from the nearest city.
They take over 2Km to stop from 80Kmh.
If one runs you over, it will not notice or stop.....
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Enough of this crap...
Here's the link: http://www.cnn.com/2007/TECH/08/06/nissan.alchol.detection.reut/index.html
And plenty of stories about GPS excuses - hell I was a passenger in a car when the driver almost turned down a one-way street because the GPS said so.
Enough is enough - why don't we just make cars drive themselves - if they can put all this technology in a car to prevent you from driving while drunk or GPS systems, oh and there's the car that can parrallel park... then might as well let it do all the driving - at least then people could get more work done on the commute. Spend more time with the family on vacations driving wherever. Its time.
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Re: Enough of this crap...
Hmmm.. Seems like you need a new chauffeur.
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Re: Enough of this crap...
Chances are, the benefits will never be enough for anyone to foot the bill to implement it, though it is technically possible.
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GPS follower
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ITS and TDM necessary...
This was tried several years ago in Germany for the Autobahn... With big hitters such as Lucent, Dahlmer Christer, Deutsche Telecom, and consultant friends (read: star performers fresh out of College without practical experience) from Booz Allen Hamilton. The project got nowhere, and DT, at least, ended up charging it to the balance sheet in the right column.
Probably one of the best worldwide implementations of TDM and ITS is actually stateside... In Colorado (Can you believe it). It must be a monster to maintain because of the snow-- it causes potholes and break in-road connections to TDM/ITS sensors.
So if you want to perform certain tasks such as turning, it may be best to move to Colorado. They seem to have a lot of things going right.
I hear they are also a major hub for content distribution, and have one of the most educated workforces in the US, lower cost of living in relationship to NYC or Los Angeles. Quality of life ranks in the top too.
Hmmm.. Maybe I should start get some of my Billionare friends together and start a full blown movie studio in Denver. Sounds crazy, but there is a tax stiphon on the books for that. http://www.metrodenver.org/
I love the fact that I put on a wikipedia article that Denver was on 105 meridian a few months ago, and now they are using it in their marketing efforts. :-)
One-Bounce Satellite - Denver is the largest U.S. city to offer one-bounce satellite uplinks that provide real-time connections to six out of seven continents in one business day.
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ITS and TDM necessary...
This was tried several years ago in Germany for the Autobahn... With big hitters such as Lucent, Dahlmer Christer, Deutsche Telecom, and consultant friends (read: star performers fresh out of College without practical experience) from Booz Allen Hamilton. The project got nowhere, and DT, at least, ended up charging it to the balance sheet in the right column.
Probably one of the best worldwide implementations of TDM and ITS is actually stateside... In Colorado (Can you believe it). It must be a monster to maintain because of the snow-- it causes potholes and break in-road connections to TDM/ITS sensors.
So if you want to perform certain tasks such as turning, it may be best to move to Colorado. They seem to have a lot of things going right.
I hear they are also a major hub for content distribution, and have one of the most educated workforces in the US, lower cost of living in relationship to NYC or Los Angeles. Quality of life ranks in the top too.
Hmmm.. Maybe I should start get some of my Billionare friends together and start a full blown movie studio in Denver. Sounds crazy, but there is a tax stiphon on the books for that. http://www.metrodenver.org/
I love the fact that I put on a wikipedia article that Denver was on 105 meridian a few months ago, and now they are using it in their marketing efforts. :-)
One-Bounce Satellite - Denver is the largest U.S. city to offer one-bounce satellite uplinks that provide real-time connections to six out of seven continents in one business day.
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GPS
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Re: ITS and TDM necessary...
Err Left Column...
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THe drivers head was where?
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On the Road with a GPS System
I am a Canadian citizen, but I then lived in Bellingham, WA, USA and work near it. At the beginning of April 2006, I went to visit my mother who was then living in Greenwood, BC, Canada. At the car rental place, because neither of the cars available was acceptable -- perfumed cleaners are a non-computer risk some face -- and because I am a frequent customer, I was upgraded at no extra cost to a SUV, a SUV with a GPS navigator: the NeverLost system. I did not get lost, but that was not entirely due to the device.
I lost little time in starting to play with this new toy.
I found it interesting all of the streets that were nearby. Unfortunately, sometimes, the names were truncated, and in at least one case, the truncated name made sense as a word. I did not see any way to adjust the magnification.
I saw that I could ask for a course to my mother's. Unfortunately, the interface was a bit confusing and rather than selecting the city of Greenwood, BC (the smallest incorporated city in Canada), I accidentally selected the then-current city and a street. There is a street named Greenwood in Bellingham. There is also one in Lynden (near to Bellingham). I found myself being directed to the south. My mother's home was north and east. The device was quite persistent: "Please proceed to the designated route." Later, it got desperate, words to the effect of "When legal, please make a U-turn." I finally shut it off.
I tried again later, and it worked, mostly. My mom lived on Kimberley Street. It is one of, if not the, longest street in Greenwood. The device did not know its name. It did know many of the other streets, including the cross-street by my mom's then-home. The cross-street is two short blocks long. I finally programmed the device for the city centre of Greenwood.
I crossed the border at Sumas. I then proceeded to Hope. While on the way, at one point I glanced at the display to see that a road was displayed to the right. This was disconcerting as that was where a cliff was. The road turned out to deadend. I think it was a deactivated road, possibly the old highway.
I usually stop at a certain gas station in Hope to buy a sandwich and drink. In that area, there are under- and over-passes. The device got confused. It got its revenge shortly. When I restarted the SUV, I looked at the display and was confused. The USA operates on the Imperial system of measure, and Canada uses the metric system. The device, recognising that it was in Canada, had switched to metric. When I looked more closely, I could see the miles display. It was rather smaller than the digits.
The gas station is on the old highway which parallels the current highway. To get onto the current highway involves a few tight turns. Some of these, the device knew and some it did not. I was directed to make turns when there was no other road, but sometimes, the curve had no instructions. This also happened when I left Keremeos, BC.
The device warns about 2 Km before a turn and then just before. The turnoff for the Hope-Princeton Highway had already diverged from the main highway by nearly one lanewidth before the device announced the just before warning that I should turn. I was already in the correct lane. Had I not been in the correct lane, I could not have safely switched.
Not long after, I looked at the time display. As it was just after noon, I could not tell whether it was the time I would arrive in Greenwood or the time left before I would arrive in Greenwood. Later, I found that that detail was documented on the card that was dangling from the unit, but many other things were not.
While driving on the Hope-Princeton Highway, I found that many roads that had no names were on the display, but that some roads that had names were not present.
The Hope-Princeton Highway does run through wilderness, and in many places, there are no other roads nearby. That did not stop the device from telling me three times each way to "Proceed to the designated route." The voice is a bit startling when it is not expected.
Glancing from time to time at the time-to-go display, I got suspicious. It seemed to be assuming 80 Km/h. This is the default highway speed in BC, but the Hope-Princeton Highway is known for being rather curvy in places. It has plenty of signs suggesting slower speeds. At one place, the advisory is 20 Km/h. In the summer, one can go bombing along much of the highway. In the winter, the curves get more dangerous, and you had better slow to 20 Km/h on the worst curve. This was near the end of breakup, so conditions could vary considerably? What was the device assuming?
Princeton is at the west end of "The Regional District of Okanagan-Similkameen". The device displayed this from time to time clipped to "Okanagan-Similkameen Region". Much of this time, it displayed this next to the road on the other side of the Similkameen River. There was no differentiation of region or city names from street names. That road across the river is called "Old Hedley Road". When it finally was displayed, well, the device leaves off the road designation. The device did not display the river though earlier, it had displayed much smaller creeks.
Leaving the village of Keremeos, BC, the road winds up a hill. At the bottom of the hill, there is a curve to the right (which the device told me about), a curve to the left at the top of the hill (which the device did not tell me about), and finally a right turn to the highway I wanted (which the device told me about). The up-shot was that I was told to make a right turn followed by a right turn, and it did not make sense. It was good that I knew the road.
In the hamlet of Cawston, BC, the device thought that the main street deadended and suggested accordingly.
I get paid in US dollars, so I prefer to spend US dollars. Therefore, rather than continuing through Canada, I cross at Nighthawk, WA, proceed to Oroville, WA, fill up with gas, and cross back into Canada at Osoyoos, BC.
The device kept trying to get me to turn around. I was wondering when it would give up. While I was wondering I saw a road displayed on the device, but there was no road there, no sign of there ever having been a road there, and no sign of anything else that the device should know about (such as a creek). A few miles past the border crossing, there is another road, a real one. The device seems to understand the world as segments. When I got off the segment, it recalculated. The road to Oroville is a nice drive, very pretty. At least one of the roads that the device shows is actually a long driveway.
Ah, Canada. The device was displaying Imperial. Remember how the device switched measuring systems in Hope? It switched again after I restarted the SUV at the gas station in Oroville. The system in use depends not on what country you are in, but what country you were in when you started the vehicle. I found later that one can force the setting, but I did not experiment to see if that locked down the measuring system used or that it just lasted until the next vehicle startup. Imagine explaining to a border officer that you are experimenting with your GPS. Guessing is such fun.
The device also had an odd idea of which way I should go. As far as I can tell, it intended to keep me on the highways. I know of a shortcut, and I took it. The device did not handle it well. Trying to get me back "on course", it suggested some bad ideas.
1) One road to the left comes down a hill which is steep enough that the road is broken into left and right branches. The device suggested that I take the far branch. This would have necessitated a turn of approximately 150 degrees. The near branch is about thirty degrees.
2) Later, it suggested that I take a right turn -- remember that the previous suggestion was for a left turn? -- onto a narrow road with patched potholes when I was on the best road around and which led straight to the programmed route.
3) I rejoined the programmed route and prepared to turn right. The device was instructing me to turn left!
One thing that I never did solve was how to get the device to just display without having a route programmed. I wanted to see where I was without having to select a destination.
The device has a safety feature that disables most of the user interface when the vehicle is in motion. It was also mounted so that the person in the front passenger seat would not be able to see the display. I thought this was rather counterproductive.
When I set out to go home, I planned again to stop in Oroville for gas. While I did not know the exact address, I thought I could get close. For some reason, the highway was not listed. Unfortunately, the device requires you to select first what you want (nearest city centre, a particular city centre, or a particular intersection) then the city name. The other way around is much more natural to me. It also would have been much quicker as entering alphabetic was a slow process with no keyboard.
Again, I crossed the border at Nighthawk. I crossed into the US a final time. The border between Canada and the USA is is at 49 degrees north latitude. For some reason, the device told me I was in the USA when it still displayed me at seven seconds of latitude north of the border. According to my estimate, I was much closer.
I decided to let the device tell me how to get to Bellingham. Understand that I take a short route. Roughly, I go west, then I go south. The system picked a route that was much longer and windier. Among other places that I saw, the oddly appropriate Chance Road. In Osoyoos, it was trying to keep me on the highways. Here, it avoided them until the end.
I did make it home safely, and I certainly see where these devices are useful, but much salt is needed.
Sincerely,
Gene Wirchenko
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bow chica wow wow
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pandora-bracelets-sale
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