CLOSEST OF CALLS
A North Vancouver driver is grateful to be unharmed after a transport truck with an insecure load launched a large metal beam through the driver’s side of her windshield. On October 7 at the Iron Workers Memorial Bridge. Resident Susan Milne said, “everything happened so fast. I didn’t have a lot of time to consider what my options were.” Vancouver police suspect that the truck was heading in the opposite direction of Milne when the beam fell, bounced from the bridge into her vehicle, and was blocked by the steering wheel. Milne said North Vancouver firefighters and police soon arrived, but no ambulance ever arrived–one was diverted to a more urgent incident, while other was delayed by congested traffic. With only a few cuts and bruises and her son unharmed, Milne considers herself lucky that things hadn’t been more dire.
MONEY PIT
Just when you thought your childhood fear of quicksand has passed, your car is consumed by the earth. That is what four Edmonton residents must be thinking after a sinkhole after a sinkhole opened in the parking lot of a south-end Infiniti dealership on September 20. Owner of the neighbouring Mercedes-Benz Heritage Valley dealership, Lucky Uppal told CTV News Edmonton that he is lucky the hole didn’t open any closer, or his showroom would be in the pit. The sinkhole consumed four vehicles: two new, one used and one belonging to a customer. A recovery professional said the hole was likely caused by an overflowing underground stormwater tank that washed away the earth beneath the parking lot, causing the pavement to give way. The Edmonton Power Corporation (EPCOR) ruled that because it formed on private property the dealership is obligated to clean up the damage itself.
The sinkhole consumed four vehicles: two new, one used and one belonging to a customer. Photo @joeiscranky on Twitter
SCIENTIFIC ODDITIES
Bodywork meets arts and crafts with the University of Tokyo’s latest project: a pair of motorized eyes for autonomous vehicles (AVs), intended to alert pedestrians to whether they’ve been seen by the vehicle. Unlike today’s vehicles, future AVs may not have human drivers, and require the ability to telegraph “driver” intent to pedestrians. Researchers created scenarios in a virtual reality environment, where nine male and nine female pedestrians decide whether it was safe to cross the road. In half the tests, the AV would wait for the pedestrian, while the other half drove through. Half featured googly eyes; half without. It was found that the googly eyes helped male pedestrians make fewer dangerous road crossings, while fewer female pedestrians chose to wait for a car intending to stop. In both cases, the googly eyes resulted in smoother and safer crossings for pedestrians and vehicles alike.
It was found that the googly eyes helped male pedestrians make fewer dangerous road crossings, while fewer female pedestrians chose to wait for a car intending to stop.
TECHY TAPWATER
Two hydrogen fuel cell electric buses were recently on display at the Edmonton Electric and Hydrogen Vehicle Expo, where one official decided to prove how clean the tech is by drinking straight from a bus tailpipe. The two buses—Xcelsior models manufactured by New Flyer—use a Ballard fuel cell electric engine, which releases water and heat instead of greenhouse gas emissions. The verdict? It quenches. These buses are part of Alberta’s $9.8 million Zero Emissions Hydrogen Transit initiative to cut greenhouse gas emissions. Edmonton’s energy transition strategy aims to cut emissions by 35 percent, compared to levels recorded in 2005. The locale looks to achieve this by 2025 and cut a further 50 percent by 2030. The city is striving for zero-net emissions per person by 2050.
Fancy a glass of fuel-cell-sourced H2O? They say it’s shockingly refreshing.
