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Sydney tunnel water screen stop sign for oversized vehicles [video]

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Re: Sydney tunnel water screen stop sign for oversized vehicles [video]

#51

Post by danielharan »

Smerity wrote: post #4
bluedevil2k wrote: post #2

It's a really cool idea, but I couldn't help but think they should move the water stop sign to well BEFORE the million dollar damage point. Some big trucks would have a hard time seeing the stop sign, reacting to it, slamming on the brakes, and coming to a complete stop in time before they cause damage to the overhang and beams.

The advantage with the signs before the final water sign is that they should be enough for any reasonably alert driver and don't make the environment more hazardous. You really want to have the water screen projection, which douses the road with water, as the last line of defence. Water on the road is likely to make it far more difficult to stop a large truck like that. Having it earlier could actually be detrimental…

No. The whole point is to make this work for the sleep-deprived, inattentive drivers. Designing for "any reasonably alert driver" will result in horrible accidents.

Re: Sydney tunnel water screen stop sign for oversized vehicles [video]

#53

Post by libria »

joyeuse6701 wrote: post #17

It was cool seeing it in action (I wonder who thought of it, and got passed the bureaucracy to make it happen). I wonder whether they considered industry standard truck height when building that tunnel.

Cool enough that some exec is wondering how they can utilize it for future advertising. Looks like that water screen even had space in the corner for a "Glasses not working? 1-800-CONTACTS".

Re: Sydney tunnel water screen stop sign for oversized vehicles [video]

#54

Post by pavel_lishin »

jevinskie wrote: post #5

The footage of the 20 ton beam getting knocked out of the tunnel ceiling by a truck was remarkable. I hope there were no injuries!

I'm surprised a truck was able to knock it down. A 20 ton beam sounds like something that's rather important, I figured it would be attached fairly securely.

Re: Sydney tunnel water screen stop sign for oversized vehicles [video]

#55

Post by gsnedders »

Kluny wrote: post #47
aashaykumar92 wrote: post #7

What a neat idea! But if these trucks are PURPOSEFULLY breaking the laws and continuing to go through the tunnel, I am not sure that this solution will hold up for too long; after all, the clever truck drivers will know it is a mere illusion. Furthermore, instead of a water screen, wouldn't a brick screen be more effective? Personally, I wouldn't mind going through water nearly as much as I would be running into a br…

The drivers aren't doing it purposely. They have been driving for 16 hours, are in an unfamiliar city, and are almost asleep at the wheel.

16 hours!? Wow. The EU has a legal maximum of 10 hours per day — and that's only allowed twice a week, ordinarily 9 hours, with at least 45 minutes break every 45 minutes.

Re: Sydney tunnel water screen stop sign for oversized vehicles [video]

#57

Post by DanWaterworth »

Kluny wrote: post #42
dlhavema wrote: post #33

Earlier quoted context omitted.

signs and "plackards" go ignored all the time. i worked in a computer lab and had to put up signs when things were broken ( internet, printer, etc.. ) and we always got people ignoring them...

"Placards" is the word you're looking for. Yeah, nobody likes reading, and even when they do, they assume that they can disregard the signs if they have a good reason - such as, they reaaaally want to. At some point you have to accept this, do some A/B testing and find the way to actually get people's attention. For instance, a WET PAINT sign will be ignored. But "This paint was wet at 8:32 AM, please do not touch ti…

Sort of related: I heard a story where a decorator would write signs that said "wet pant" instead of "wet paint", because the "wet paint" sign would cause people to touch the paint to see if it was indeed wet. The "wet pant" signs, however, would cause people to point out the spelling error instead of leaving finger marks.

Re: Sydney tunnel water screen stop sign for oversized vehicles [video]

#59

Post by jessedhillon »

danielharan wrote: post #51
Smerity wrote: post #4

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The advantage with the signs before the final water sign is that they should be enough for any reasonably alert driver and don't make the environment more hazardous. You really want to have the water screen projection, which douses the road with water, as the last line of defence. Water on the road is likely to make it far more difficult to stop a large truck like that. Having it earlier could actually be detrimental…

No. The whole point is to make this work for the sleep-deprived, inattentive drivers. Designing for "any reasonably alert driver" will result in horrible accidents.

When we have reliable, safe, self-driving cars this is the first industry that should be replaced by robots. How archaic is it that we pay people to ruin their bodies while attempting the inhuman task of keeping perfectly alert for several boring hours, while piloting a giant mass at lethal speeds.
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