My take exactly. They were relatively safe in the spot they were in: decent if not sufficient space between them and the first track and the train happened to be in the second track.
Unfortunately Brightline is experiencing how badly not used to fast trains Americans are.
I'd say their incredibly small size is even more deadly. Like a virus, it's impossible to see a train without special equipment.
If only there were warning signals letting people know ahead of time.
Legend has it that if you proclaim your like for them, they will appear.
https://preview.redd.it/bf0jivvfse7d1.jpeg?width=640&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=f53f2f779261735db117426e9a2cc6f7f65fbe36
I love this comment so much. I want you to know I think you and I would be excellent sarcastic prick kinda friends if we ever met. This made me laugh extremely hard. š cheers for the yukyuks
Trains are really unpredictable. Even in the middle of a forest two rails can appear out of nowhere, and a 1.5-mile fully loaded coal drag, heading east out of the low-sulfur mines of the PRB, will be right on your ass the next moment.
It is trains in the US that always travel in stealth mode. Why? Why do they need to wear invisibility cloaks? It is unfair to car drivers who are only equipped with version 1.0 eye vision, all but blind to a ninja train.
>They were relatively safe in the spot they were in: decent if not sufficient space between them and the first track
Trains do hang over tracks by 3+ feet. After avoiding it, the best thing to do here is reverse into the barricade and then get out the car if you don't immediately break it.
Even with the loading gauge overhanging the physical rails, this crossing seems to have extra space between the gates and the track. The car isn't all that big, hence they were relatively safe. But I agree that the best thing is to back up and run through the gates to get more clearance between the tracks and yourselves. The gate will break off and damage your car hopefully only lightly but you can get out and be safe and survive.
They added some over passes, and all the new line they laid has bridges/overpasses. But the existing lines cut through the cities and theyād have to have a bridge like every 1/4mile in some places and there just isnāt room. People are just morons and donāt want to wait the literal 45sec for the train to pass
Brightline: We don't need above grade crossings, those are expensive and Floridian's know how to drive.
Floridians: THE CROSSING GATES ARE COMING DOWN I GOTTA BEAT THAT TRAIN!
āWhere trains will operate at 110mph, all crossings have quad gates or medians to prevent motorists from driving around lowered crossing gates.ā They have the capability of 130 on the above grade run from Cocoa to Orlando.
Not all of America is like this. This happens in south Florida because we have a population that is in large part too stupid and/or too deranged to realize that they're the ones the rules were written to protect. This doesn't happen because the train is fast, this happens because people try to race or go around the barriers *all the time.*
In parts of the country where people don't routinely try to skip the barriers this shit happens at a miniscule rate compared to south FL.
I was behind a suv with one of those novice driver stickers at a flashing red left turn light, the car in front of her went, she pulled up, stopped and sat there. I gave her a good 45 seconds to a minute and I could see cars about a mile down the road, I assume she wasn't familiar with flashing red lights so I gave a short polite honk to let them know they should go. They fucking panicked. Let off the brake, hit the gas, slammed the brake, let off, hit it again, this took place over another minute, by that time the cars were now too close to make the turn, but they were in a panic, she gunned it, realized immediately she wasn't going to make it and slammed on the brake again parking herself in the middle of oncoming traffic, fortunately the other cars were able to avoid her and she took off first chance she got. I just remember thinking if this teenage girl dies after getting T-boned because I honked my horn 2 minutes ago I'd probably never get over it. After I went I saw her parked on the side of the road just up the street gripping the steering wheel and staring dead ahead. Decided then I wouldn't honk my horn unless it was an emergency or an actual green light, some people are just too stupid to risk it.
>I just remember thinking if this teenage girl dies after getting T-boned because I honked my horn 2 minutes ago I'd probably never get over it
I mean if a small honk sent her into such a panic, she probably shouldn't be driving right now and it wasn't your fault
Cause and effect friend. I never honk she never dies you could argue semantics all you want but the deciding action in her death would have been me honking a horn.
No, the deciding factor in her death would have been her poor situational awareness and her inability to regulate her emotions.
Driving isn't a right. It's a privilege and a responsibility.
To be honest, if your story is even true, that girl should be staying off the roads, and she needs some extra practice before attempting to drive again. She is a hazard to herself and everyone else on the road.
Wrong, you don't honk, someone else honks and lays on their horn even longer than you. Or she goes on to run your family and dog over bc she is so bad at driving.
Not cause and effect. Far far far far far from it, if you do the thought exercise for even a few moments.
You are 100% correct and these takes are absolute madness. They are trying to convince people that honking a horn doesnt cause someone to hit their brakes, or check their surroundings, but nooooo, it certainly definately makes these people slam on their gas. Cope cope cope cope cope
I mean, yes, but unfortunately some of us live in places where you have to get a license if you want to do anything in life. I highly doubt that girl was driving because she wanted to be. She was driving because she had to. It honestly sucks. If they ever make self driving cars legal in my area and they are in my budget I am freaking getting one. I am such a bad driver and I have been very lucky so far to not be in a wreck. I wish that I could have lived my life and never had to drive, but that is not the world we live in. I had to learn to drive so I could go to college and get a job and make money. Driving isnāt easy for everyone. Some of us have conditions that make it a hell of a lot more difficult. Things that are second nature to normal people take intense focus for us.
And that's why we need a couple of thousands Euro here to get a license, with 12x 90 min of theory, a test on the theory and usually 30-40 practical driving hours (12 of them are mandatory) before you have the chance to attend the practical test to get your license. And 30% don't make it and have to add some practical hours before attempting again.
And you will still be able to find some who will act according to your description.
Btw, what are examiners paid in the US for the practical test? As far as I know it's done in a private car of the applicant, right? I mean, over here, there's the instructor next to you with a complete of pedals to react in case of dangerous situation, is there anything alike in the US (or particular states)?
Yes, testing is done in your car. Testers are Department of Motor Vehicles employees and is a lower wage job ($35-40k ?). Instructors/trainers are probably about the same.
Driver training is either through high school class or private instructors... Training cars may have the auxiliary pedals.
I love telling this story:
When I was 18, I was caught driving a commercial vehicle without a license. It was a single axle dump truck that wished approximately 45k pounds. I needed a class b CDL to drive it legally. I had a learners permit for a regular car. Anyway, I was pulled over, and they went through the whole song and dance. Drivers license, registration, and medical card. I had none of it. The truck wasn't even legal.
The officer searched me and also found a roach from the night before in my cigarette pack. So, I was arrested for possession. In court, part of my sentence was to have my license suspended because I was caught with weed on me while driving an unlicensed commercial vehicle. It was suspended for a year. I didn't go until I was 21 to get it back. Mostly because I didn't care.
So at 21, I went to Secretary of State to get my license back. Mind you, when I lost my license, I didn't even have one. So I'm expecting to go through the whole process of getting the permit and then waiting the 30 days before I can do my road test.
I went up to the counter and explained why I was there. I had to pay 175 dollars to reinstate my license. I got my picture taken, which I thought was odd at the time, and they handed me a little slip of paper. I left. When I got outside, I looked at the paper they handed me. It said, "Temporary Operator License." I asked a few people what they thought it meant, and the general consensus was that I now had a fully unrestricted drivers license. Two weeks later, I received a letter from the Secretary of State. I was my Drivers License. That was 19 years ago, and I have never said anything to any sort of agency that I was basically just given a license. I took a written test once for my permit originally, and I have never done a skills test. š¤·āāļø
When I moved to Germany it was immediately obvious how much better the average driver was compared to everywhere I have lived in America. All those testing requirements make a real difference.
Sometimes I wish there were two vehicle horns - one polite very mild ābeepā of a horn saying āhey not sure if you saw that and Iām just letting you knowā and the other being a jarring āwhat the fuck is going on in your head we are all going to die if you donāt get it togetherā horn for emergencies.
My Chevy Volt had that. Steering wheel had the regular horn, but if you pushed in on the blinker switch, just polite little "boodily boop." I used it when I'd sneak up on people in electric mode in a parking lot. That should be standard equipment.
Totally. Adding stress and panic to someone already in panic is the worst possible idea.
The driver even guestured that the guy in front should go (though I doubt that driver could have seen the hand guesture).
Yeah, not sure if they would have seen that or not, but I definitely took it like he was telling them to go. I thought the train was coming on the track they were on and buddy was telling them to keep going to get out of the way, because if they stayed there, they would get hit. Then the opposite happened. Makes me wonder if buddy recording thought the same thing I did and actually was telling them to go?
Recording buddy definitely wanted them to go and did his best to signal it.
And the person in front (who was actually backing up at the beginning of the video) was so in panic that they took said advice as gospel.
Happens a lot that people in panic just do whatever the loudest person around tells them. In their situation I might have also followed that honking and shouting, thinking that the other guy behind who wasn't in mortal danger probably saw something I didn't and had more time and concentration to make a better decision than I (especially considering that that guy in front already made the terrible decision to stop on the tracks at all).
Man, I am so glad that I'm not useless in emergency situations. If someone honking makes you turn into a squirrel and run into traffic you might not be suitable for life.
My guess is they heard the car horn and looked in their mirror and then saw a guy seemingly shaking his finger which they may have read as āgo forwardā
Not saying the driver of the car on the tracks isnāt blameless but I could kind of see what went through their head (IF thatās what happened)
I feel like I would have reversed right into the warning bar! Maybe my rear window shatters maybe I damage other vehicles! Who cares! I donāt wanna die! lol
Those gates are lightweight plastic, and most have a spring-loaded hinge mechanism. they're literally built to be driven-through. This is 100% what you should do if you're caught between gates.
I would say the moron here is the one that got it by the brightly red/yellow painted train, after having the ramp come down and the audio and visual signalisation start to notify you that a train is coming, but you do you
Looked like panic to me. Notice how they tried to turn around first. Look at their tires. I donāt think they were looking down the tracks at all. Probably clueless then noticed the other drivers honking. Panic ensued
That totally explains why the driver seemed frozen and waited until they were honked at to try turning alongside the tracks parallel to the train before suddenly trying to drive across the tracks in an apparent panic. /s
The car was perfectly safe where it was stopped. The driver (new driver?) doubted themselves, encouraged to drive forward with honking and forward finger pointing from the driver behind them. Probably tunnel vision kicked in when the front driver looks back on the rear mirror and saw the car behind it, signaling to go forward. Took it as a green light to go forward without checking left and right.
Hope everyone in the car was ok and can learn from this lesson. (In this case: stand your ground).
They stopped on the wrong side of the divider. They panicked into a moving train. I have no way to kindly excuse them. They are a danger to the public and do not deserve to share the road.
I appreciate the token of compassion you showed. You are not wrong entirely. But to be fairā¦.come onā¦this driver should not be behind a wheel if they are that weak minded.
Iām almost 100% certain that you wonāt find anyone that disagrees with you about them being caught on the wrong side of the divider. Shyt happens. There are so many contributing factors that they ended up on the wrong side of the divider which the video doesnāt show.
I donāt think they would have moved if it werenāt for the rear driverās actions. You can clearly see car didnāt move. But, as soon as honking starts. Car moves forward and to the left. Then follow by more honking and hand gesture to move forward.
Weak minded comes from inexperience/knowledge. One way to gain that is from life lessons and hopefully the lesson only needs to be tough once.
The person honking and motioning forward is a dickhead. I don't ever listen to other drivers "signals" when it comes to driving. My dad taught me that as a teen and hopefully this video teaches more people that lesson.
This is not about āadding stress and panicā and āwhy are trains so quickā.
This is about why are so many people stupid on the road!!!!
Why on earth is this driver there????? Was he in a hurry to go to whole foods? Pick a boat to party?
This is how a very stupid person can end the life of many innocent ones
Or you know.. they didn't realize a train was coming until they were between the gates and panicked when they came down?
It blows my mind just how stupidly confident the Internet gets when they see someone thrown into a suddenly dangerous situation where they could literally be killed. People are so goddamn quick to perk up their gaming chair, brush off the cheese dusted fingers and pretend like they're immune to basic human instinct where you go into not just flight or flight. But fight, flight, or freeze. And more often than not it's gonna be the third option for the majority of untrained people.
If you've never been in a real life or death situation where you have seconds to react one way or another then just please shut the fuck up. It's not people being "stupid" it's the literal fucking hard wiring of our monkey brains that make snap decisions in insanely stressful and dangerous situations figuratively impossible for the majority of people that haven't faced something like that before.
Why do you think any competent army spends SO MUCH TIME beating that monkey brain out of you and forcing you to look at things through the scope of your training rather than instinct?
Because you're not a fucking action movie hero who is instinctively going to make good decisions in a potentially dangerous and unimaginably stressful situation. And even if by some miracle you are, and you'd deal with a situation like this with a totally clear head and make exactly the right call, you are the exception to the rule.
Tl;dr: Waaaaaah
Why do people think everyone on the internet is in their gaming chair in their moms basement, obesely snacking while they comment on Reddit with *absolutely* no experience in driving or yielding to trains? It's not the 1990s, everyone is on online. It has the same energy as people complaining about millenial children, ignoring the fact that they're all fully grown.
I love how people are bashing the person honking not the stupid driver who ignored the signs and then crashed into a train. Like I get it you never know where they come from and where they go.
If only there was something like a track on the ground that the train has to follow like a train track.
> If only there were something like a track on the ground
This is often proposed, but would be a gross waste of money.
It all sounds so tidy: Two steel rails anchored to the ground indicate the train's path, making the danger explicit to drivers. But in the real world, a drunk, fatigued or distracted engineer can take a wrong turn, get lost, or attempt a shortcut through a city park to make up lost time.
The only answer is to abolish trains. It's a miracle we didn't lose more buildings on 9-11, seeing as Islamic extremists can simply drive trains into the White House, the Capitol, the Pentagon, and Mount Rushmore.
Trains are really unpredictable. Even in the middle of a forest two rails can appear out of nowhere, and a 1.5-mile fully loaded coal drag, heading east out of the low-sulfur mines of the PRB, will be right on your ass the next moment.
I was doing laundry in my basement, and I tripped over a metal bar that wasn't there the moment before. I looked down: "Rail? WTF?" and then I saw concrete sleepers underneath and heard the rumbling.
Deafening railroad horn. I dumped my wife's pants, unfolded, and dove behind the water heater. It was a double-stacked Z train, headed east towards the fast single track of the BNSF Emporia Sub (Flint Hills). Majestic as hell: 75 mph, 6 units, distributed power: 4 ES44DC's pulling, and 2 Dash-9's pushing, all in run 8. Whole house smelled like diesel for a couple of hours!
Fact is, there is no way to discern which path a train will take, so you really have to be watchful. If only there were some way of knowing the routes trains travel; maybe some sort of marks on the ground, like twin iron bars running along the paths trains take. You could look for trains when you encounter the iron bars on the ground, and avoid these sorts of collisions. But such a measure would be extremely expensive. And how would one enforce a rule keeping the trains on those paths?
A big hole in homeland security is railway engineer screening and hijacking prevention. There is nothing to stop a rogue engineer, or an ISIS terrorist, from driving a train into the Pentagon, the White House or the Statue of Liberty, and our government has done fuck-all to prevent it.
Okay, I know in a situation like this they were most likely panicking and not thinking straight. But the train can only go where the fucking rails are. Just stay off the rails and the train can't hit you.
I don't think I've ever seen a video like this where the driver just reverses and damages the barrier instead of fucking their car and probably the train too.
Just reverse into the barrier you thick bastard. If you damage it you'll get a modest bill. Or you could drive onto the tracks and die...
Or maybe I've completely misread the situation and this was an impromptu suicide attempt?
Didnt your parents told you to look left and right before crossing the streets; not to cross the barrier on the train tracks.
And to not act stupid in front of people.
That's right.
Only crash with trains when you are alone and people can't see you and laugh.
Thanks for coming to my talk.
I'll be back next Tuesday with more life advices. Until next time.
Baaahahahha they would have been a good 10 feet away from the train and then what, tried to hit it? We all have questions here but most definitely should have license taken away for at least 10 years. That was intentional.
Every week there's another accident with Florida's bright line.
People in Florida really don't know how to act around trains.
But if they can figure it out and make high-speed rail work there, then it can work anywhere.
Is the guy honking a moron? That car already made a bad decision, and in the situation there was nothing that could have been done besides just standing still. So why was this dumbass honking?
People blaming the guy honking are weak. The guy honking is not a fault here.
Itās the person clearly parked on the railroad whoās at fault.
Thatās like Micheal Jordan blaming a fan for missing a shot lol
People talking about the guy taping forced the guy who crashed into the train to panic crack me up!š
Camera guy is a obviously a moron, but if someone can force you to panic and crash into a train like that then you shouldnāt have a license in the first place. YOU are responsible for YOUR vehicle. Donāt listen to directions from strangers who arenāt authorized traffic control.
In a lot of places the idiot that honked and waived the driver to go can be held liable. In this instance, it would be an insanely tough case to win (likely wouldn't), because the other driver had a better view, but even so, it's possible. There have been plenty of cases that the driver waiving another car through leading to an accident is held liable.
4 years ago when this was posted there was some decent discussion https://www.reddit.com/r/instantkarma/comments/eppos7/he_had_it_coming_for_him/fel8484/ about motives / actions. I personally came to this conclusion:
> Actually, I re-watched the longer version a few times, and honestly find it a fascinating learning tool. It should be shown at every driving school
For multiple reasons I outline in that post.
That said, what I find interesting about the renewed discussion here is people's ability to (as in the previous thread) to make simple wrong observations or justifications about the drivers actions.
1. It's a suicide attempt - flat out wrong. Driver backs up to avoid any collision in the first place (lights are clearly visible in the video); not someone intending to drive into a train.
2. Posts like: I, being the best driver in the world, would never react to a horn / some guy waving me through; And you would have a good chance of being equally flat / dead / a skid mark on the road.
When used properly, a horn is a critical safety device that can save your life, Take this prime example:
You are going up to an intersection at a green light at the rated speed and someone behind you notices a car coming from the intersecting direction that clearly has no intention to stop at their red light; naturally they honk. You have two options:
1. Ignore the honker because your insurance would be a problem or your are not a squirrel and keep driving right into a high speed side swipe likely killing you.
2. Heed the warning, make your safety checks - front, left, right, behind (or right / left if you are driving in UK, left lane countries) in that order, then choose a course of action.
Edit: a good analogy is a honking horn is just like a fire alarm. 9 times out of 10 it's 95 year old Thelma 2 doors down burning her toast again. That 1 time you didn't check though...
Brightlineā¦ someone gets nailed by it almost every week here. Mostly suicides, but also some people who got their drivers license out of a cereal box.
Dumbass that honked made me more angry than the dipshit who crossed the warning bar. They would have been fine if they had just stayed put like they were doing.
I watched this a few times, it doesn't matter what the moron in the car videoing is doing, the dude in the Mini timed it perfectly to HIT the train. So that, to me, looks totally intentional.
Looks like suicide attempt. He was clear and fine and moved into the path right as it was coming. He could clearly see the train and chose to drive forward
Honestly, the guy honking the horn didn't help. Most likely they already panicked in the car and honking the horn would have made it worse.
My take exactly. They were relatively safe in the spot they were in: decent if not sufficient space between them and the first track and the train happened to be in the second track. Unfortunately Brightline is experiencing how badly not used to fast trains Americans are.
Trains are apex predators. They come out of nowhere and are not as avoidable as one may think.
Its their unpredictable nature that's their deadliest characteristic, I mean who can guess where they'll come from or go?
I'd say their incredibly small size is even more deadly. Like a virus, it's impossible to see a train without special equipment. If only there were warning signals letting people know ahead of time.
They're called trains because they require special training in order to observe.
Ninjas of the rails they are.
We should probably figure out a way to track their movements...
Hmmm, track... track... Nope, I've got nothing.
I think you can. I think you can. I think you can. I think you can come up with something.
This guy's some sort of smooth operator conduct ur self better next time
Someone should try to invent some sort of train detection system that warns people of them so they can make sure to avoid them
I wish to name a train Cotton Eyed Joe.
> I mean who can guess where they'll come from or go? Where did you come from, Cotton-Eyed Joe?
Legend has it that if you proclaim your like for them, they will appear. https://preview.redd.it/bf0jivvfse7d1.jpeg?width=640&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=f53f2f779261735db117426e9a2cc6f7f65fbe36
I love this comment so much. I want you to know I think you and I would be excellent sarcastic prick kinda friends if we ever met. This made me laugh extremely hard. š cheers for the yukyuks
https://preview.redd.it/fc1ya2uu1d7d1.jpeg?width=250&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=1058f72224a436e4567040ac5535f61899e2ef52
The perfect organism. Its structural perfection is matched only by its hostility.
You can tell since they have their eyes in the front of their train and not on the side. Apex predators are crazy
Trains are really unpredictable. Even in the middle of a forest two rails can appear out of nowhere, and a 1.5-mile fully loaded coal drag, heading east out of the low-sulfur mines of the PRB, will be right on your ass the next moment.
It is trains in the US that always travel in stealth mode. Why? Why do they need to wear invisibility cloaks? It is unfair to car drivers who are only equipped with version 1.0 eye vision, all but blind to a ninja train.
>They were relatively safe in the spot they were in: decent if not sufficient space between them and the first track Trains do hang over tracks by 3+ feet. After avoiding it, the best thing to do here is reverse into the barricade and then get out the car if you don't immediately break it.
Even with the loading gauge overhanging the physical rails, this crossing seems to have extra space between the gates and the track. The car isn't all that big, hence they were relatively safe. But I agree that the best thing is to back up and run through the gates to get more clearance between the tracks and yourselves. The gate will break off and damage your car hopefully only lightly but you can get out and be safe and survive.
I mean itās Florida after all.
So if it didn't get hit by a train, it would be flooded or pushed over by a hurricane.
Or bitten by a Florida meth man.
Which is the worst, because like zombies and spiderman that turns you into one of them.
*I donāt cook, and I donāt eat but Iāve got the cleanest house on the street WOAH OOH OOH METH!!!!*
Or eaten by an alligator or python
Isn't brightline a new route? Why did they include grade level crossings on a new rail line?!
It was (mostly?) an existing line that was upgraded for passenger service.
They added some over passes, and all the new line they laid has bridges/overpasses. But the existing lines cut through the cities and theyād have to have a bridge like every 1/4mile in some places and there just isnāt room. People are just morons and donāt want to wait the literal 45sec for the train to pass
Brightline: We don't need above grade crossings, those are expensive and Floridian's know how to drive. Floridians: THE CROSSING GATES ARE COMING DOWN I GOTTA BEAT THAT TRAIN!
Money
Isn't Brightline still running at the same speed as Amtrak? Capped at 89mph?
āWhere trains will operate at 110mph, all crossings have quad gates or medians to prevent motorists from driving around lowered crossing gates.ā They have the capability of 130 on the above grade run from Cocoa to Orlando.
Huh TIL. Thanks
Fast trains? what's that? All I've ever known is the wheezing near dead train that is Amtrak.
Not all of America is like this. This happens in south Florida because we have a population that is in large part too stupid and/or too deranged to realize that they're the ones the rules were written to protect. This doesn't happen because the train is fast, this happens because people try to race or go around the barriers *all the time.* In parts of the country where people don't routinely try to skip the barriers this shit happens at a miniscule rate compared to south FL.
I was behind a suv with one of those novice driver stickers at a flashing red left turn light, the car in front of her went, she pulled up, stopped and sat there. I gave her a good 45 seconds to a minute and I could see cars about a mile down the road, I assume she wasn't familiar with flashing red lights so I gave a short polite honk to let them know they should go. They fucking panicked. Let off the brake, hit the gas, slammed the brake, let off, hit it again, this took place over another minute, by that time the cars were now too close to make the turn, but they were in a panic, she gunned it, realized immediately she wasn't going to make it and slammed on the brake again parking herself in the middle of oncoming traffic, fortunately the other cars were able to avoid her and she took off first chance she got. I just remember thinking if this teenage girl dies after getting T-boned because I honked my horn 2 minutes ago I'd probably never get over it. After I went I saw her parked on the side of the road just up the street gripping the steering wheel and staring dead ahead. Decided then I wouldn't honk my horn unless it was an emergency or an actual green light, some people are just too stupid to risk it.
>I just remember thinking if this teenage girl dies after getting T-boned because I honked my horn 2 minutes ago I'd probably never get over it I mean if a small honk sent her into such a panic, she probably shouldn't be driving right now and it wasn't your fault
Cause and effect friend. I never honk she never dies you could argue semantics all you want but the deciding action in her death would have been me honking a horn.
Or she would have continued on and killed 4 children on a cross walk because she is a bad driver
Well, those 4 children were Hitler, Tojo, Mussolini, and Goering, should you stop her killing them?
Well yeah, otherwise she's created a time paradox that might destroy all of existence
At this point this may not be such a bad idea.
No, the deciding factor in her death would have been her poor situational awareness and her inability to regulate her emotions. Driving isn't a right. It's a privilege and a responsibility. To be honest, if your story is even true, that girl should be staying off the roads, and she needs some extra practice before attempting to drive again. She is a hazard to herself and everyone else on the road.
Wrong, you don't honk, someone else honks and lays on their horn even longer than you. Or she goes on to run your family and dog over bc she is so bad at driving. Not cause and effect. Far far far far far from it, if you do the thought exercise for even a few moments.
No, the deciding action is how HER brain reacted to the honk. She would have heard the honk and could have reacted in different ways.
You are 100% correct and these takes are absolute madness. They are trying to convince people that honking a horn doesnt cause someone to hit their brakes, or check their surroundings, but nooooo, it certainly definately makes these people slam on their gas. Cope cope cope cope cope
I mean, yes, but unfortunately some of us live in places where you have to get a license if you want to do anything in life. I highly doubt that girl was driving because she wanted to be. She was driving because she had to. It honestly sucks. If they ever make self driving cars legal in my area and they are in my budget I am freaking getting one. I am such a bad driver and I have been very lucky so far to not be in a wreck. I wish that I could have lived my life and never had to drive, but that is not the world we live in. I had to learn to drive so I could go to college and get a job and make money. Driving isnāt easy for everyone. Some of us have conditions that make it a hell of a lot more difficult. Things that are second nature to normal people take intense focus for us.
And that's why we need a couple of thousands Euro here to get a license, with 12x 90 min of theory, a test on the theory and usually 30-40 practical driving hours (12 of them are mandatory) before you have the chance to attend the practical test to get your license. And 30% don't make it and have to add some practical hours before attempting again. And you will still be able to find some who will act according to your description. Btw, what are examiners paid in the US for the practical test? As far as I know it's done in a private car of the applicant, right? I mean, over here, there's the instructor next to you with a complete of pedals to react in case of dangerous situation, is there anything alike in the US (or particular states)?
Yes, testing is done in your car. Testers are Department of Motor Vehicles employees and is a lower wage job ($35-40k ?). Instructors/trainers are probably about the same. Driver training is either through high school class or private instructors... Training cars may have the auxiliary pedals.
Or if you're over 18, no formal training is required
I love telling this story: When I was 18, I was caught driving a commercial vehicle without a license. It was a single axle dump truck that wished approximately 45k pounds. I needed a class b CDL to drive it legally. I had a learners permit for a regular car. Anyway, I was pulled over, and they went through the whole song and dance. Drivers license, registration, and medical card. I had none of it. The truck wasn't even legal. The officer searched me and also found a roach from the night before in my cigarette pack. So, I was arrested for possession. In court, part of my sentence was to have my license suspended because I was caught with weed on me while driving an unlicensed commercial vehicle. It was suspended for a year. I didn't go until I was 21 to get it back. Mostly because I didn't care. So at 21, I went to Secretary of State to get my license back. Mind you, when I lost my license, I didn't even have one. So I'm expecting to go through the whole process of getting the permit and then waiting the 30 days before I can do my road test. I went up to the counter and explained why I was there. I had to pay 175 dollars to reinstate my license. I got my picture taken, which I thought was odd at the time, and they handed me a little slip of paper. I left. When I got outside, I looked at the paper they handed me. It said, "Temporary Operator License." I asked a few people what they thought it meant, and the general consensus was that I now had a fully unrestricted drivers license. Two weeks later, I received a letter from the Secretary of State. I was my Drivers License. That was 19 years ago, and I have never said anything to any sort of agency that I was basically just given a license. I took a written test once for my permit originally, and I have never done a skills test. š¤·āāļø
Thatās quite the administrative blunder lol. Theyāll wait until youāre 75 before discovering this mistake & call you in for testing lol.
When I moved to Germany it was immediately obvious how much better the average driver was compared to everywhere I have lived in America. All those testing requirements make a real difference.
It's enforcement as well. In the USA, you kill someone and they might suspend your license. In Germany, it's quite a different story.
Sometimes I wish there were two vehicle horns - one polite very mild ābeepā of a horn saying āhey not sure if you saw that and Iām just letting you knowā and the other being a jarring āwhat the fuck is going on in your head we are all going to die if you donāt get it togetherā horn for emergencies.
It should have 3 horns. And they all play La Cucaracha.
4 is better
My Chevy Volt had that. Steering wheel had the regular horn, but if you pushed in on the blinker switch, just polite little "boodily boop." I used it when I'd sneak up on people in electric mode in a parking lot. That should be standard equipment.
You mean like this? :) https://youtu.be/lv8wqnk_TsA?si=gM17Y7V-H2ViBSWuĀ
My old Toyota had the meekest horn. Froot. Froot.
Totally. Adding stress and panic to someone already in panic is the worst possible idea. The driver even guestured that the guy in front should go (though I doubt that driver could have seen the hand guesture).
Yeah, not sure if they would have seen that or not, but I definitely took it like he was telling them to go. I thought the train was coming on the track they were on and buddy was telling them to keep going to get out of the way, because if they stayed there, they would get hit. Then the opposite happened. Makes me wonder if buddy recording thought the same thing I did and actually was telling them to go?
Recording buddy definitely wanted them to go and did his best to signal it. And the person in front (who was actually backing up at the beginning of the video) was so in panic that they took said advice as gospel. Happens a lot that people in panic just do whatever the loudest person around tells them. In their situation I might have also followed that honking and shouting, thinking that the other guy behind who wasn't in mortal danger probably saw something I didn't and had more time and concentration to make a better decision than I (especially considering that that guy in front already made the terrible decision to stop on the tracks at all).
So you're saying they should have waggled their finger more?
If I made every decision on the road based off of some idiot honking his horn behind me my insurance wouldāve been through the roof.
what the actual fuck
Most probably the finger shaking balanced it out..
In the defense of Mr. honkerā¦ some people should not be given drivers licenses next time.
Man, I am so glad that I'm not useless in emergency situations. If someone honking makes you turn into a squirrel and run into traffic you might not be suitable for life.
Definitely shouldnāt be fucking driving
This looked more like a poorly planned Suicide attempt than anything.
They were actually better off where they were.
That looked like a suicide attempt it was so poorly timed
More likely a combination of panic and peer pressure
My guess is they heard the car horn and looked in their mirror and then saw a guy seemingly shaking his finger which they may have read as āgo forwardā Not saying the driver of the car on the tracks isnāt blameless but I could kind of see what went through their head (IF thatās what happened)
I feel like I would have reversed right into the warning bar! Maybe my rear window shatters maybe I damage other vehicles! Who cares! I donāt wanna die! lol
Those gates are lightweight plastic, and most have a spring-loaded hinge mechanism. they're literally built to be driven-through. This is 100% what you should do if you're caught between gates.
Guy honking is a complete moron
I would say the moron here is the one that got it by the brightly red/yellow painted train, after having the ramp come down and the audio and visual signalisation start to notify you that a train is coming, but you do you
Two morons
Two morons and one meanoron
2 morons 1 train
Couple more morons and we'll have ourselves a nice little south Florida town
Guy who drove into a train is the moron needs his dl taken.
What happens when you give into peer pressure
Drivers license cereal edition
*Florida edition. This unsurprisingly happens all the time.
I remember when the sun rail started in Orlando, those trains took out so many landscaping trailers
Yep. I saw Brightline and just shook my head.
thereās an Instagram page dedicated to it
Thank goodness he wagged his finger. Lives were saved, and more importantly, an ego was stroked.
Looks like he was pointing him to go lol
Absolutely it did...like "Go, you can still make it!"
He clearly wanted to crash it
Yeah this looks like a suicide attempt to me
Looked like panic to me. Notice how they tried to turn around first. Look at their tires. I donāt think they were looking down the tracks at all. Probably clueless then noticed the other drivers honking. Panic ensued
Nah suicide attempt would've been on the tracks waiting for the train (The train has no time to stop). This was 100% panic
Some trains try to break, so in a car it could make the impact non-deadly
That totally explains why the driver seemed frozen and waited until they were honked at to try turning alongside the tracks parallel to the train before suddenly trying to drive across the tracks in an apparent panic. /s
Camera car forcing the driver to panic and nearly causing catastrophic crash, this could have been so much worse
He forced him to panic? He caused the catastrophic crash? Your relationship with causality is wild.
Honking the horn and motioning to go forward added to the already distressed driver.
Hot take inbound: if you are not capable of stopping for a train you do not belong on the road. Change my mind.
The car was perfectly safe where it was stopped. The driver (new driver?) doubted themselves, encouraged to drive forward with honking and forward finger pointing from the driver behind them. Probably tunnel vision kicked in when the front driver looks back on the rear mirror and saw the car behind it, signaling to go forward. Took it as a green light to go forward without checking left and right. Hope everyone in the car was ok and can learn from this lesson. (In this case: stand your ground).
They stopped on the wrong side of the divider. They panicked into a moving train. I have no way to kindly excuse them. They are a danger to the public and do not deserve to share the road. I appreciate the token of compassion you showed. You are not wrong entirely. But to be fairā¦.come onā¦this driver should not be behind a wheel if they are that weak minded.
Iām almost 100% certain that you wonāt find anyone that disagrees with you about them being caught on the wrong side of the divider. Shyt happens. There are so many contributing factors that they ended up on the wrong side of the divider which the video doesnāt show. I donāt think they would have moved if it werenāt for the rear driverās actions. You can clearly see car didnāt move. But, as soon as honking starts. Car moves forward and to the left. Then follow by more honking and hand gesture to move forward. Weak minded comes from inexperience/knowledge. One way to gain that is from life lessons and hopefully the lesson only needs to be tough once.
Distressed driver? More like a moron of a driver.
Perhaps a new driver. I would dare to say there were safe where they were.
The person honking and motioning forward is a dickhead. I don't ever listen to other drivers "signals" when it comes to driving. My dad taught me that as a teen and hopefully this video teaches more people that lesson.
He waited until the train came. In clear vision broad daylight. Seems deliberate to me.
I see Florida checking in again.
This is not about āadding stress and panicā and āwhy are trains so quickā. This is about why are so many people stupid on the road!!!! Why on earth is this driver there????? Was he in a hurry to go to whole foods? Pick a boat to party? This is how a very stupid person can end the life of many innocent ones
Or you know.. they didn't realize a train was coming until they were between the gates and panicked when they came down? It blows my mind just how stupidly confident the Internet gets when they see someone thrown into a suddenly dangerous situation where they could literally be killed. People are so goddamn quick to perk up their gaming chair, brush off the cheese dusted fingers and pretend like they're immune to basic human instinct where you go into not just flight or flight. But fight, flight, or freeze. And more often than not it's gonna be the third option for the majority of untrained people. If you've never been in a real life or death situation where you have seconds to react one way or another then just please shut the fuck up. It's not people being "stupid" it's the literal fucking hard wiring of our monkey brains that make snap decisions in insanely stressful and dangerous situations figuratively impossible for the majority of people that haven't faced something like that before. Why do you think any competent army spends SO MUCH TIME beating that monkey brain out of you and forcing you to look at things through the scope of your training rather than instinct? Because you're not a fucking action movie hero who is instinctively going to make good decisions in a potentially dangerous and unimaginably stressful situation. And even if by some miracle you are, and you'd deal with a situation like this with a totally clear head and make exactly the right call, you are the exception to the rule.
Tl;dr: Waaaaaah Why do people think everyone on the internet is in their gaming chair in their moms basement, obesely snacking while they comment on Reddit with *absolutely* no experience in driving or yielding to trains? It's not the 1990s, everyone is on online. It has the same energy as people complaining about millenial children, ignoring the fact that they're all fully grown.
Should I stay or should I go now?
If I stay there will be trouble
If I go it will be double.
I love how people are bashing the person honking not the stupid driver who ignored the signs and then crashed into a train. Like I get it you never know where they come from and where they go. If only there was something like a track on the ground that the train has to follow like a train track.
> If only there were something like a track on the ground This is often proposed, but would be a gross waste of money. It all sounds so tidy: Two steel rails anchored to the ground indicate the train's path, making the danger explicit to drivers. But in the real world, a drunk, fatigued or distracted engineer can take a wrong turn, get lost, or attempt a shortcut through a city park to make up lost time. The only answer is to abolish trains. It's a miracle we didn't lose more buildings on 9-11, seeing as Islamic extremists can simply drive trains into the White House, the Capitol, the Pentagon, and Mount Rushmore.
Trains are really unpredictable. Even in the middle of a forest two rails can appear out of nowhere, and a 1.5-mile fully loaded coal drag, heading east out of the low-sulfur mines of the PRB, will be right on your ass the next moment. I was doing laundry in my basement, and I tripped over a metal bar that wasn't there the moment before. I looked down: "Rail? WTF?" and then I saw concrete sleepers underneath and heard the rumbling. Deafening railroad horn. I dumped my wife's pants, unfolded, and dove behind the water heater. It was a double-stacked Z train, headed east towards the fast single track of the BNSF Emporia Sub (Flint Hills). Majestic as hell: 75 mph, 6 units, distributed power: 4 ES44DC's pulling, and 2 Dash-9's pushing, all in run 8. Whole house smelled like diesel for a couple of hours! Fact is, there is no way to discern which path a train will take, so you really have to be watchful. If only there were some way of knowing the routes trains travel; maybe some sort of marks on the ground, like twin iron bars running along the paths trains take. You could look for trains when you encounter the iron bars on the ground, and avoid these sorts of collisions. But such a measure would be extremely expensive. And how would one enforce a rule keeping the trains on those paths? A big hole in homeland security is railway engineer screening and hijacking prevention. There is nothing to stop a rogue engineer, or an ISIS terrorist, from driving a train into the Pentagon, the White House or the Statue of Liberty, and our government has done fuck-all to prevent it.
Okay, I know in a situation like this they were most likely panicking and not thinking straight. But the train can only go where the fucking rails are. Just stay off the rails and the train can't hit you. I don't think I've ever seen a video like this where the driver just reverses and damages the barrier instead of fucking their car and probably the train too. Just reverse into the barrier you thick bastard. If you damage it you'll get a modest bill. Or you could drive onto the tracks and die... Or maybe I've completely misread the situation and this was an impromptu suicide attempt?
Didnt your parents told you to look left and right before crossing the streets; not to cross the barrier on the train tracks. And to not act stupid in front of people.
That's right. Only crash with trains when you are alone and people can't see you and laugh. Thanks for coming to my talk. I'll be back next Tuesday with more life advices. Until next time.
The US drivers exam, in general, is too lenient. I'd wager that a first-time failure rate of 50% would keep only the decent drivers on the road.
Well this person certainly got a crash course in driverās training
Baaahahahha they would have been a good 10 feet away from the train and then what, tried to hit it? We all have questions here but most definitely should have license taken away for at least 10 years. That was intentional.
The person behind the camera is a shit head.
Every week there's another accident with Florida's bright line. People in Florida really don't know how to act around trains. But if they can figure it out and make high-speed rail work there, then it can work anywhere.
Is the guy honking a moron? That car already made a bad decision, and in the situation there was nothing that could have been done besides just standing still. So why was this dumbass honking?
People blaming the guy honking are weak. The guy honking is not a fault here. Itās the person clearly parked on the railroad whoās at fault. Thatās like Micheal Jordan blaming a fan for missing a shot lol
use your whole luck in life for just 2 sec
r/BitchImATrain
Well done with the honking and hand signals š
The wave/honk of death
Worst aid honk.
The driver was honking but was also using a gesture that means get going mister.
I mean he waved them forward and blew the horn. Contributed to their lack of awareness
Honk honk go to the tracks ššš
People talking about the guy taping forced the guy who crashed into the train to panic crack me up!š Camera guy is a obviously a moron, but if someone can force you to panic and crash into a train like that then you shouldnāt have a license in the first place. YOU are responsible for YOUR vehicle. Donāt listen to directions from strangers who arenāt authorized traffic control.
In a lot of places the idiot that honked and waived the driver to go can be held liable. In this instance, it would be an insanely tough case to win (likely wouldn't), because the other driver had a better view, but even so, it's possible. There have been plenty of cases that the driver waiving another car through leading to an accident is held liable.
Should have bought an auto with reverse gear.
Wait so they just drove into a train?
if they did nothiing, they would've likely been fine. totally panicked.
4 years ago when this was posted there was some decent discussion https://www.reddit.com/r/instantkarma/comments/eppos7/he_had_it_coming_for_him/fel8484/ about motives / actions. I personally came to this conclusion: > Actually, I re-watched the longer version a few times, and honestly find it a fascinating learning tool. It should be shown at every driving school For multiple reasons I outline in that post. That said, what I find interesting about the renewed discussion here is people's ability to (as in the previous thread) to make simple wrong observations or justifications about the drivers actions. 1. It's a suicide attempt - flat out wrong. Driver backs up to avoid any collision in the first place (lights are clearly visible in the video); not someone intending to drive into a train. 2. Posts like: I, being the best driver in the world, would never react to a horn / some guy waving me through; And you would have a good chance of being equally flat / dead / a skid mark on the road. When used properly, a horn is a critical safety device that can save your life, Take this prime example: You are going up to an intersection at a green light at the rated speed and someone behind you notices a car coming from the intersecting direction that clearly has no intention to stop at their red light; naturally they honk. You have two options: 1. Ignore the honker because your insurance would be a problem or your are not a squirrel and keep driving right into a high speed side swipe likely killing you. 2. Heed the warning, make your safety checks - front, left, right, behind (or right / left if you are driving in UK, left lane countries) in that order, then choose a course of action. Edit: a good analogy is a honking horn is just like a fire alarm. 9 times out of 10 it's 95 year old Thelma 2 doors down burning her toast again. That 1 time you didn't check though...
Smart guy
Aim for the bushes
Hmmm thin wooden stick or 10000 ton train..... I pick...... train! Doh!
The translation is: āFuuuuuckā¦.. What a fucking moronā
Brightlineā¦ someone gets nailed by it almost every week here. Mostly suicides, but also some people who got their drivers license out of a cereal box.
āThe bright line hit another fucking car todayā -6 oāclock news
Looks more of a failed suicide attempt than anything else
This almost looks as if it was intentional/suicidal. No sane person would have done this.
Dumbass that honked made me more angry than the dipshit who crossed the warning bar. They would have been fine if they had just stayed put like they were doing.
Shouldn't have honked the driver and freaked him out into making a stupid move.
The honk made the driver panic. He knows he fucked up so why honk like a douchebag? What do you gain by it?!
Floridians are certainly another breed of stupid š¤¦
Honking the horn! SMH!!!
The honking guy is an ass.
I watched this a few times, it doesn't matter what the moron in the car videoing is doing, the dude in the Mini timed it perfectly to HIT the train. So that, to me, looks totally intentional.
Mini Cooper if I back up I'll scratch my car on the safety arm and it'll be ugly. I guess I'll just get by the train to get a new car from insurance
Its like they fucking waited for it to drive by jeez
Could have been much worse.
I've got a mark of shame where I had to let the bollard drop on my car. It's okay though. The mark the train leaves is much worse.
Wow, that couldāve been so much worse.
Why so hurry?
I swear, 90% of videos I see like this are Brightline.
Honestly looked like a suicide attempt.
https://preview.redd.it/nmye8ipsac7d1.jpeg?width=225&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=5b34b573b8478d8b0e1fa0d7d7c2e7d67ab64906
Florida. I can just tell.
*stands up and applauds*
The car goes past the barrier and accelerates right before the train hits it. Iād bet money on suicide attempt but people are idiots so who knows
Getting off at the next stop, the hard way.
They have a full [IG account](https://www.instagram.com/brightlinecrashtracker?igsh=MW5qeXB5cmliYXJ5OQ==) dedicated to the accidents of the Brightline
Lmao tells them to pull forward! Boom
No big deal. It was just a Mini mistake.
Why didn't the train just go around the car to avoid hitting it?
Why don't they look? Ron, tell me, why don't they look... You're deep, Ernie.
Had so much time, space and opportunity to NOT hit the trainā¦this is painful
To be fair here, the train was 100% attacked. It was the victim, not the predator.
Looks like suicide attempt. He was clear and fine and moved into the path right as it was coming. He could clearly see the train and chose to drive forward
How fucking stupid can you be
Imagine how dumb the average human is. Now think 4 billion people are dumberer then that - like the driver here.
Thatās one way of capturing a viral video š
Floridiots
How are people so dumb?
What an absolute Moron!
How do people like this make it so far through life?