Top Gear and crossing saety

Remember, he had the 2 helmets and high viz jacket on before they began the train crash.

I thought his comments were a bit dumb at first, but you could also look at it this way (bear with me on this one). As he has pointed out recently, health and safety guidelines have started to become a bit insane lately. If you remember the road repair episode a few weeks ago, he asked why they now still needed a man to walk behind a lorry when all the lorries now had rear view cameras installed. The reply from the health & safety guy was that it made reversing twice as safe! That was a bit like the spinal tap amplifiers that went up to 11...well they must be louder, they go up to 11.

My point is that the train crashing was so obviously devastating that it pretty much was all that needed to be said. If you are dumb enough to ignore the barriers and cross a level crossing, then there is a very high likelyhood that this is what is going to happen to you. No further comment needed really.

I'm glad he didn't feel the need to insult viewers intelligence by having to point out the obvious. I really hope they keep up the irreverance, because it makes it a far more effective program as a result in my opinion, and I think they got the message across very effectively. They also reran the impact during the credits at the end to reinforce the message.

QUOTE (Gary @ 27 Feb 2007, 16:10) <{POST_SNAPBACK}>The Top Gear train was unmanned. There was a loco following up behind. Was the Top Gear train operated by remote control or was it left to freewheel to a stop? It did seem to take a very long time to slow down.

The loco in the background was used to propel the crash test loco up to speed, then braked to allow the front loco to coast into (through) the car. The stopping distance of a light engine without brakes would probably not have been any further than that of a heavy train on emergency brakes. Bear in mind that the train driver would not be aware of a car running the crossing until it came into his line of sight, that is to say almost the exact moment of impact, so no brake application would be made before the crash. At 90+ mph the time taken for the driver to pull the brake handle and for the air or vacuum in the pipe to take effect would mean that it would be well past the point of impact before any braking effect took place. Add to this the possibility of the (train) driver being incapacitated by the impact and you then have to wait for the deadman's device to apply the brakes if no damage to the brake pipes is cause by the collision.

QUOTE (chengin @ 27 Feb 2007, 14:12) <{POST_SNAPBACK}>My point is that the train crashing was so obviously devastating that it pretty much was all that needed to be said. If you are dumb enough to ignore the barriers and cross a level crossing, then there is a very high likelyhood that this is what is going to happen to you. No further comment needed really.

I'm glad he didn't feel the need to insult viewers intelligence by having to point out the obvious. I really hope they keep up the irreverance, because it makes it a far more effective program as a result in my opinion, and I think they got the message across very effectively. They also reran the impact during the credits at the end to reinforce the message.

Personally, I think the irreverance was deliberate, taking into account TG's target audiance to get the message over.

Wonder why they chose the Espace - does it still have a chassis & plastic body ?

What does p me off is JC's constant harping on about older people - yes, some of them do silly things, but when wearing my truck drivers hat I have to say that generally I have to take more avoiding action when the other driver is young (either sex). Wonder if JC will have the same veiwpoint when he is old

& another thing - IMHO none of the TG cretins can drive - you only have to compare their pathetic efforts with "The Stig" (or whatever he's called) to work that out.

Back to trains - it's a credit to modern rolling stock the way the Virgin Pendolino kept its integrity. My thoughts are with the lady who tragiclly died & her family.

Further info on the set-up for the level-crossing crash:
Filmed on the line in North Lincolnshire between Barnetby and Gainsborough where it crosses the B1206 at Hibaldstow, SE of the town of Brigg; chosen because the line does not see traffic Mon-Fridays (!!) and there were alternative roads for the vehicular traffic.
31 107 was chosen becasue it was a non-runner (under its own power, that is).
31 233 was the pusher loco. Speed was circa 60mph at impact.
Espace was chosen as a 'family' vehicle possibly used on the school run to use the film on a different audience.
(Information from 'The Railway Magazine' October 2006.)

Re its presentation on Top Gear - good idea
Presented by Mr Clarkson not so good - he once was pleasently just a bit gung-ho, now he's OTT and I no longer watch Top Gear unless I'm aware in advance of something that interests me.
Regards,
John Webb

I guess I'll be waiting a few months before I get this episode of Top Gear on BBC world.

Clarkson has got a bit up himself of late though.

QUOTE (Gofer @ 27 Feb 2007, 22:19) <{POST_SNAPBACK}>Humm.... not wishing to belittle the driver as the experience must have horrendous to say the least but it's my guess that he simply applied a full brake application and froze hoping against hope - after all, what else could he do bearing in mind he must have known the train was no longer on the rails. As for Branston saying the driver stayed at the controls in order to try to 'steer' the train to safety... well that statement speaks volumes about Mr Branson's grasp of all things railway.

I was about to post pretty much exactly the same words. In a road vehicle or an aeroplane or even on a runaway steam loco the driver/pilot's actions during an accident can make a big difference. But with a modern train once the emergency brakes are on the driver has abolutely no control and about the only way he might be able to help is to hit the hazard lights and make an emergency radio call in the hope of stopping anything approaching on the other track. So he is fully justified in seeking the safest place or even baling out, though at 95mph that would not be an option and with the limited time and the risk of being thrown about he probably wasn't in a position to do anything.