Elements of Negligence
Question 1
A Sydney tramway passenger was injured in a collision with another tram, which occurred after the driver collapsed at the controls.
The plaintiff argued that the collision could have been avoided if the tramway authority had fitted the tram with a system known as `dead man’s handle’, a system in use on Sydney’s trains.
According to my findings, Dead Man's Handle refers to an old train device: the dead man's handle. It was typically some form of switch that the driver would keep closed. Should he suffer a calamity - such as a heart attack - his hand would loosen and the switch would open, stopping the train automatically. The aim of the dead man's handle was to protect the passengers, even in the worst possible case.
A dead man's switch (or dead man's handle) is a device intended to take some action if the human operator becomes incapacitated in some way, a form of fail-safe practice.
For example, most freight elevators and lawn mowers in some countries use a dead man's switch or a similar mechanism, causing them to respectively stop closing the elevator door or shut down if the switch is released. If a person faints while mowing the lawn, their hands will relax and the mower will shut off.
A very common use is in a locomotive, especially those used on underground railway systems or other rapid transit systems. The driver is required to hold down the dead man's handle to keep the train running - if he is unable to do so, the train will brake and come to a stop. The recent inquiry into the Waterfall train disaster in Sydney, Australia found a number of flaws in the deadman's handle and related deadman's pedal: * the weight of an unconscious overweight driver appeared to be enough to defeat the deadman's handle; * the design of the deadman's pedal did not appear to be able to operate as intended with drivers of all shapes and sizes. * marks near the deadman's pedal indicated that some drivers were using a conveniently sized
A Sydney tramway passenger was injured in a collision with another tram, which occurred after the driver collapsed at the controls.
The plaintiff argued that the collision could have been avoided if the tramway authority had fitted the tram with a system known as `dead man’s handle’, a system in use on Sydney’s trains.
According to my findings, Dead Man's Handle refers to an old train device: the dead man's handle. It was typically some form of switch that the driver would keep closed. Should he suffer a calamity - such as a heart attack - his hand would loosen and the switch would open, stopping the train automatically. The aim of the dead man's handle was to protect the passengers, even in the worst possible case.
A dead man's switch (or dead man's handle) is a device intended to take some action if the human operator becomes incapacitated in some way, a form of fail-safe practice.
For example, most freight elevators and lawn mowers in some countries use a dead man's switch or a similar mechanism, causing them to respectively stop closing the elevator door or shut down if the switch is released. If a person faints while mowing the lawn, their hands will relax and the mower will shut off.
A very common use is in a locomotive, especially those used on underground railway systems or other rapid transit systems. The driver is required to hold down the dead man's handle to keep the train running - if he is unable to do so, the train will brake and come to a stop. The recent inquiry into the Waterfall train disaster in Sydney, Australia found a number of flaws in the deadman's handle and related deadman's pedal: * the weight of an unconscious overweight driver appeared to be enough to defeat the deadman's handle; * the design of the deadman's pedal did not appear to be able to operate as intended with drivers of all shapes and sizes. * marks near the deadman's pedal indicated that some drivers were using a conveniently sized