Do We Have Too Much Faith in Technology?
Technology is all around us, we are forced to trust it at every turn. We trust it to keep track of how much cash we actually have in the bank, we trust it to count that cash and give it to us in the street. Technology is responsible for making sure our train gets us to work on time, and technology makes sure that your dinner does not burn in the oven whilst you are watching The Simpsons. It is unavoidable; we have to trust technology many times a day.
But we can take things too far, some technology is imprecise at best, most people realise this and adjust their behaviour, many do not with disastrous consequences. Let us consider some of the startling road traffic accidents that have been caused by a drive following their GPS unit too closely.
In the USA, a bus driver, carrying a girls softball team as passengers, blindly followed his GPS unit under a low bridge, far too low for his bus, and sheared off the roof. Ignoring the large yellow signs that were screaming LOW CLEARENCE! At him, the driver proceeded under the bridge, as he believed the GPS unit was set to truck/bus mode and trusted its judgement. A spokesman for the bus company was quoted as saying “We just thought it would be a safe route because, why else would they have a selection for a bus?” which just goes to prove that people are somewhat dumb sometimes.
In the UK, a female motorist was following directions to Carmarthen, she was following here GPS unit and came to a closed railway crossing that was not highlighted on the unit. She decided the GPS was right (mind boggling) and that the crossing was not real (even more mind boggling) and proceeded to life the first of the closed gates (idiot alert). She drove her car onto the tracks and climbed out and went to open the gate on the other side of the crossing. She was completely amazed when a train came along and totally trashed her car! I mean, how stupid can a person get?
Again in the UK, a driver was following his GPS unit through the village of Luckington (appropriate name) and was not paying attention to the actual conditions outside of the vehicle. His GPS unit directed him onto a bridge which crosses the River Avon. Unfortunately, the bridge had been closed for repairs for over a week, the car drove straight off the incomplete bridge and into the river. When local residents were asked to comment on the accident they replied that it was nothing uncommon and that they had been pulling an average of two cars a day out of the river for the past week! One resident told that when questioned, the drivers often replied with something along the lines of “My sat-nav told me it was this way”.
GPS accidents are now becoming a common occurrence, frequently lethal and easily avoided by following proper operating instructions.