Well said Interception_7. And to add, over-reliance on
technology can leads to one's downfall. If automated train system
is all that awesome, why is there a need to have humans to man the
system? Did you watch iRobot? That's exactly what happens when
humans over-rely on technology.
And to answer the doubts of those who find that SMRT is
discriminating the physically disabled, they are not.
Why is that so? Here are some of the reasons:
Vision
- TO need to have a clear visual of track side signals,
obstacles and signage. Failure to heed any of these
warnings/visuals may result in an accident, which may result in
casualties/death.
- If vision is impaired, it may result in TO pressing the wrong
button at the wrong time. In the worst case, it may result
in casualties/death.
Hearing
- As mentioned, TO needs to have a healthy
hearing to be able to operate a train. For
example, TO may not be able to hear what the OCC is trying to say.
If what the OCC is trying to convey to the TO is important
and of a certain urgency, if not acted promptly, may results in
casualties/death.
- Technical faults which are hints to a upcoming mechanical
explosion/fire/emergencies. If TO are unable to hear these
sounds, the result of not hearing them may result in
casualties/death.
- Passengers communication through
CEB with the TO. If TO is unable to catch what the
passengers is trying to say, casualties/death may
occur.
So are you able to set your mind to rest while
commuting/joy-riding with a person who may not be able to operate a
train correctly when emergency-like situation occurs?
I am not being exaggerating, but being a TO is not just about
driving a train. There are of course, many other reasons but the
short list I've given should be sufficient for your understanding.
Casualties and death are reasonable enough to explain why
the physically disabled are often not allowed to operate trains,
let alone an aircraft.
Lastly on a side note, stop derailling this thread. This is a
Train Happenings thread. If you have any queries related to
trains/railway related stuffs, kindly post in it's relevant
thread. Thank you.
I beg to differ. Yes, whether is it Dragonaxe side or
Interception / E5 side, both had try to see things in different
prespective. Well, while I agree with what you said on above
reason, but dont forget that Din89 uses a hearing
aid. As I am not a deaf person, neither did I used one
such device, therefore unable to comment te effectiveness of such
tools but based on various related advertisement, they generally
say thanks to XXX hearing aid, I have finally found my hearing back
etc. Well, hearing aid is not foul proof also it is not necessary
for deaf only but also suitable for people who has poor hearing but
not completely deaf, and maybe to me, the cloest thing i could
think of is an earpiece. Nobody is asking SMRT / other rail
operators to provide these people an hearing aid, but what I am
trying to say is that hearing aid are meant to provide and act as
an ear drum, and hence it should be comparable to a real and
healthy ear drum without deaf issue. So, the above arguments along
with Interception does not sound reasonable anymore.
So, based on your argument, people who wears spectacles /
contact lens are also ban from driving car, bus, plane (Not over
500 degree) or train because they got some vision problems and
hence they need these stuffs? The answer is definitely no, so why
not the same rule applied to hearing aid, as Din89 has used to say
he is not completely deaf in his previous post. Please dont say it
is stupid to use spectacles / contact lens as counter argument but
its all about safety, unless you are trying to say the reason
spectales / contact lens are allowed .is because ~73% of SG
population and comparable ratio of the populations are wearing
either of them and it is kind of "mission impossible" to find
people who dont wear spectacles and / or contact lens but medically
and educationally qualified to be trained as a driver, TO or
pilot.
