Videos of near misses with trains

The BBC has this short video of three near misses with trains. The best one is the last one, where a guy on foot loses his shoe (and miraculously nothing else) when a high-speed train nicks him. Yikes!

[#1 posted by pAULbOWEN, February 11, 2009 10:02 AM]

We may no longer have any manufacturing base to speak of, but we still do world class dumb.

[#2 posted by mgfarrelly, February 11, 2009 10:10 AM]

This is only going to get worse as trains continuing skulking about the countryside in 'stealth mode'.

[#3 posted by GregLondon, February 11, 2009 10:15 AM]

Trains, the new silent killer.

[#4 posted by ROSSINDETROIT, February 11, 2009 10:29 AM]

I was in Cleveland a few weekends ago. I was surprised to find at intersections where traffic crosses train tracks there are big signs saying

"YIELD TO TRAINS".

Apparently Ohio will give driver's licenses to people it doesn't trust to stay out of the way of a locomotive.

[#5 posted by CVR, February 11, 2009 10:29 AM]

And these are not like 1.5 mile long coal trains that would delay one for 15 minutes. These things are like the length of three city buses. I guess some natural selection is going on in Britain. Hopefully these people haven't reproduced.

[#6 posted by Lester, February 11, 2009 10:34 AM]

Yes, if only they gave some sort of warning. A gate, perhaps, or some kind of noisy signal.

[#7 posted by Clayton Hove, February 11, 2009 10:37 AM]

That must have been a training shoe.

[#8 posted by astrochimp, February 11, 2009 10:37 AM]

"three near misses with trains"

I think that second, invisible train was the scariest.

[#9 posted by arkizzle / Moderator, February 11, 2009 10:42 AM]

Yeeekers!

The first one shit me up, and then the third (!!!)..

[#10 posted by Anonymous, February 11, 2009 11:00 AM]

I've just thought up a new game.

It's called who can cum on the passing train.

[#11 posted by Bevatron Repairman, February 11, 2009 11:04 AM]

I saw a Datsun B-210 get hit by a freight train at the crossing in Truckee, CA -- I was first at the crossing. The train was slowing down at that point (the fellow had driven onto the tracks as the gate was going down and then got stuck), but even with a quarter-mile of warning, the train was still going 30mph or so. The car got tossed about 60 feet down the track, 15 feet in the air, and about 15 feet away from the track. The driver lived, but did spill her drink.

[#12 posted by zeroy, February 11, 2009 11:11 AM]

I once watched a woman run across six lanes of traffic, against the light, on Ventura Boulevard in order to catch a Rapid bus, an express bus that runs EVERY FIVE MINUTES during rush hour.

[#13 posted by Miss Jess, February 11, 2009 11:21 AM]

Natural selection is right. Goodness gracious.

[#14 posted by dbarak, February 11, 2009 11:22 AM]

@ #1 posted by pAULbOWEN

"We may no longer have any manufacturing base to speak of, but we still do world class dumb."

Now if I could just find a way to export it...

[#15 posted by bcsizemo, February 11, 2009 11:27 AM]

You know I thought this Top Gear video was a pun or joke, but perhaps not:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ekpD06P7kiI

[#16 posted by Patrick Dodds , February 11, 2009 12:36 PM]

Don't worry dbarak - we can export it just fine:

http://www.wumingfoundation.com/images/blair_berlusconi.jpg

[#17 posted by Anonymous, February 11, 2009 1:08 PM]

Er... wouldnt these be 'near-hits'?

[#18 posted by Spikeles, February 11, 2009 1:59 PM]

Here in Australia we get idiots ignoring train stop signs all the time, and we also have signs saying "GIVE WAY TO TRAINS". Nobody does, they just don't care, so many trains get derailed all the time. Some of the politicans are trying to get speed humps installed just before train crossings to try to slow people down.

Heck, here is a near miss in the town i live in: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_dRDgX6Vj-4 and the amazing thing is, it's a fricken POLICE CAR.

[#19 posted by dculberson, February 11, 2009 2:08 PM]

"None at all!"

[#20 posted by Antinous / Moderator, February 11, 2009 2:14 PM]

"We may no longer have any manufacturing base to speak of, but we still do world class dumb." Now if I could just find a way to export it...

It's called Hollywood.

[#21 posted by Takuan, February 11, 2009 2:40 PM]

"near hits"

[#22 posted by Spikeles, February 11, 2009 2:43 PM]

PS: I honestly don't care about the douches that get themselves killed, i DO care about the passengers, and especially train drivers. They are just normal people, and (i imagine) seeing people get splattered all over the front of their trains is not something they can forget very easily.

[#23 posted by hassan-i-sabbah, February 11, 2009 3:08 PM]

HA! Fucking weird !The guy who loses his trainer is some distant relative of mine!idiot half cousin.Not the finest strand of the house of Sabbah.

[#24 posted by Bobdotcom, February 11, 2009 3:49 PM]

@20 Takuan:

Thanks, I was going to point that out, but you beat me to it. George Carlin has an excellent bit on that. "*crash* Oh look! They nearly missed!"

[#25 posted by neurolux, February 11, 2009 6:06 PM]

They need to build some sort of "car catcher" on the front of trains. Like a cow catcher, it'd be a big wedge on the front of the train. Yes, the driver of the car would probably still get killed from being thrown hundreds of yards away, but at least the train won't get derailed.

[#26 posted by bibulb, February 11, 2009 6:13 PM]

@24 : "But not quite!"

[#27 posted by alisong76, February 12, 2009 12:25 AM]

Astrochimp, the vehicle was foul of the line while the gates were down and the warning light on, that is too close. I work in rail and I get so sick of hearing the mooing and lowing about "better level crossings" or "better brakes on trains" (yeah, right, have you any idea of the stopping distance a 500 tonne train requires?) every time some idiot Darwins him or herself. As you can plainly see from these videos, the facilities of the crossing or the conditions of the train's brakes have zero to do with it. Just don't be an idiot at a crossing - NOTHING is so important you can't wait a few moments. Even a mercy dash to the hospital is no good if you all end up DOA after arguing with a train.

[#28 posted by AlmostReadytoFly, February 12, 2009 1:16 AM]

"Er... wouldnt these be 'near-hits'?"

No, because a near miss is one that is near(ly not a miss).

[#29 posted by Brother Phil, February 12, 2009 2:56 AM]

If I remember the news article correctly, the second one is a reverse cut of the first.

I would be tempted to say "Think of it as evolution in action", were it not for the danger to those on the train - that car catcher of Neurolux's sounds like a good idea.

[#30 posted by amberthehun, February 12, 2009 2:57 AM]

These examples are why I couldn't believe some of those laws passed a year or so ago in certain neighborhoods that demanded trains be "quiet" and not blow their whistle as they near road crossings. It's not like they're doing it just to annoy you, people!

Also, agreeing with the rest of the people here that the majority here are deserved Darwin Awards waiting to happen. Ugh, idiot drivers are so annoying, not to mention dangerous to others.

[#31 posted by Bummus, February 12, 2009 6:48 AM]

These entertaining videos brought to you by intrustive British CCTV. Stay tuned for another BoingBoing post decrying same in a different context.

[#32 posted by Patrick Dodds , February 12, 2009 10:29 AM]

Cute point Bummus but, of course, irrelevant.

[#33 posted by Bummus, February 12, 2009 11:17 AM]

Of course. But I was shamefully going for the cute point. :)