Quote:
Originally Posted by IROC
No, it couldn't. The brakes work fine - it's that pesky little matter of the maximum frictional forces between the tires and the road that comes back to haunt them...  |
Exactly.
Quote:
Originally Posted by IROC
Using your logic, trains could stop as quickly as a Miata if you simply spent more money on the brakes...
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I'm glad you brought up trains...
I read a great column in a model railroad magazine years ago, written by a railroad engineer who had also been a long haul trucker. He was speaking to the level of regulation and oversight from the DOT in his two different professions. Essentially, trains and railroad engineers are far more heavily regulated and far more closely watched than over the road trucks and truckers.
He was asking why this should be. Trucks operate in far closer proximity to far more people than do trains. Yet, as an engineer, the DOT monitors his every move. The black box records his speed at all times, his application of brakes, and other data pertinent to the operation of his locomotives. That black box is regularly tapped by DOT officials, who will fine him for speeding and other violations based upon data gleaned from that box (it picks up data through the rails as to where he is, what the speed limit is, and stuff like that).
No such thing in the trucking world. Oh, companies have their black boxes with which they monitor their drivers, but he said they are not required to turn them over to the DOT for periodic monitoring (this column was written years ago - does anyone know if this has changed?). That, and the boxes can give the speed of the truck, but not the speed limit of the stretch of road it is travelling. I.e., it could be doing 60, with everything looking just fine, but it might actually be in a 45 zone.
Anyway, I'm never one for more government monitoring, but it appears the trucking industry could use a bit more. We all see some horribly unsafe truckers out there among us.