I was going to apply for funds for a similar study, but got busy filling out grant paperwork to fund my study to determine where your lap goes when you stand up.

I've been around .35 and still standing (this is an estimate based on medical formulae, I don't remember anything other than a few isolated moments, and I had to be reminded of those to recall them.) The morals of this story are that some people can drink a lot and still be standing, standing doesn't mean you should be trusted to do anything other than vomit and sleep, and that it's easy to black out if you don't keep track of what you're drinking and kill half a bottle of 99 bananas, three beers, and 7 shots of absinth in an hour.

I lived in Japan for seven and a half years, and one thing I appreciated about the Japanese system was that they had on their train platforms about a two-foot wide strip of raised dots ran the length of the platform that would alert anyone and everyone as to the immenent presence of the train tracks, so everyone knew when stepping on the dots that they were close to the tracks.

Everyone knew that if you went beyond the strips and got hit by the train, it was your own fault. And that was not too uncommon, as many school-age kids would commit suicide by throwing themselves in front of the on-coming train because their grades weren't good enough to make it to a higher school....

It makes me wonder if the young lady in the OP didn't want to end her life....

Yes, I'd just love to see them decrease the gap minimum there.... and then hear all the fuss as someones coat gets caught by a train speeding by.

And a 1-foot gap is not huge, think something roughly the width of a floor tile at Walmart, that's about a foot. It's not hard at all to step across one of those tiles.

Haha, I love people that dismiss tragic accidents as Darwin-Awards. Yes, you're superior on account of not having a horrible stream of luck.

Unfortunately for the rest of us that have to hear your self-rigtheous bullshit.

Luck did not play a part in this case. It was stupidity and poor judgement (if you discern between the two) that caused this death.

To be honest, I think if you were that intoxicated you wouldn't notice the bumps. I seriously doubt bumps make any difference to someone that drunk.

My thoughts, Intoxicated or not, it was an accident. Accidents will and do happen. It is neither reasonable nor possible to prevent all of them nor should the government be required to. It would seem as though thousands of people a day safely use this transit system with no ill effects. that seems like a reasonable safety rate to me. there is no government regulation in the world that can specifically make people safer, only people's surroundings and they shouldn't be over regulated. (yes, you guessed right, none of my cars have air bags or antilock brakes. and I survive driving over 50 miles every day in all weather conditions including ice covered snow just fine)

i'm wondering how many of you people calling this gal stupid would fare in her familiar surroundings i.e. snow and ice storms like you wouldn't believe would you have the 'common sense to dress for the real possibility of a sudden storm or drop in temperature? i guess my point is mistakes happen even to intelligent people with tragic results. if this was a popular politician you'd be calling it a tragic fluke.

Even if it were my favourite politician, my mom or even my dog, an accident is still an accident. shit happens and an entire transit system shouldn't be re designed because of it.

No no. Do not stand near the edge as the train goes by...

But yeah, on difficulty, I'm not thinking about a normal person here. I'm talking about the infirm. Basically I'm saying that design criteria can be tightened slowly over time. Why not? It'd make it easier for the wheelchair bound.

(I'm sure I could manage 3 feet no problems. But that's not the point)

I'm talking about criteria for new stations also, not upgrading all existing stops.

actually LIRR and MTA have special ramps to bridge large gaps since most trains do have gaps that cannot easily be traversed by those in wheelchairs.

A steering wheel belt would solve this problem.

Thin alcoholics would instantly gain the necessary inches to prevent painful falls from train platforms. Should an out-of-spec platform allow a fall, the airbag would deploy, cushioning the fall and any impact with oncoming trains.

Had any of her friends been carrying their Pocket Fisherman they could have retrieved her in time. Stupid friends.

Tragically stupid idea for a tragically stupid accident.

Shop RonCo.
http://us.st11.yimg.com/us.st.yimg.c..._1923_46866796

We have ramps here. But it takes them a while to setup. Mind you - if they know there's somebody on the platform, they'll usually be ready when the train arrives.

But back on the clearance thing, I think (I couldn't confirm though) that Singapore has a pretty small gap on their MRT. Much better than old Melb stations, ie our older lines were built in the era of steam, while theirs are shiny-new.

Of course, you're not allowed to chew gum on the train there...

Oh, the irony of talking down to people, telling them they're full of bullshit, and then calling them self-righteous, simply because you disagree on a topic.

First of all, calling someone an idiot is not making a declaration of superiority. Just because she happened to act like an idiot, and I am not an idiot, doesn't mean I have a God complex. I can make an observation and not be putting myself on a pedestal.

If I say that girl was an idiot, that doesn't mean i'm applying to be a chapter head of Mensa. When I call her an idiot, i'm not really saying "she is an idiot, and therefore i'm a fucking genius". I'm just pointing out that she's an idiot. There's a huge difference.

Look down at your foot.

That's approximately a foot.

You can just get your foot in the gap longways.

That's huge?