Another.. "its the GPS's fault" story

[Jim Goose]

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2012-12-1...es-gps/4430364

A man caught driving the wrong way on a Victorian highway has told police he was following instructions from his GPS unit.

The 37-year-old was pulled over after travelling down the Hume Freeway between Clonbinane and Broadford, in central Victoria, around 4:30am AEDT.

The New South Wales man told police he had referred to his GPS for the 20-kilometre journey.

He said he was unconcerned by passing traffic because he thought he was on a dual carriageway.

Last week, Mildura police issued a warning about relying on devices that use online maps.

Authorities have rescued six people from the Murray Sunset National Park over the past two months due to inaccurate data.

Meanwhile, another New South Wales driver had his car impounded after being caught doing 177 kilometres an hour on the Hume Freeway last night.

The 17-year-old P-plater told police he was speeding because his car was running out of petrol.

It seems that people rely on their "devices" more then their brains....
Today i watched a teenager on his skateboard texting on his phone... as he crossed into the oncoming lane and through a stop sign because he was too busy texting. His head down the whole time and not once looked up for cars

[AWD Chaser]

Originally Posted by Jim Goose

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2012-12-1...es-gps/4430364




It seems that people rely on their "devices" more then their brains....
Today i watched a teenager on his skateboard texting on his phone... as he crossed into the oncoming lane and through a stop sign because he was too busy texting. His head down the whole time and not once looked up for cars

We try so hard to prevent natural selection....

[flappist]

It is ironic that those who so strongly advocate following instructions without questioning or applying logical reasoning regardless of situation or conditions such as speed limits etc. are confounded by the actions of those who do incredibly stupid things because they were following instructions without questioning or applying logical reasoning regardless of situation or conditions.........

[Dusty1]

I mainly use the GPS built into the Territory to monitor traffic on the route.

I was on the road as a job for nearly 5 years, and I can get to most suburbs, it is just the finer destination I need help with. I would never follow it blindly.

A user posted on this forum that the GPS in the Territory didn't show him turn offs in the Sydney tunnels (he was a Sydney sider). I would have looked at the map to see which one I needed to turn off the day/night before. A bit of forethought can be a wonderful thing.

[Fev]

And he didn't wonder why all the road signs were facing the other direction? Would be fun to peer into his thought process at the time

[TheSneakiness]

Originally Posted by Dusty1

A bit of forethought can be a wonderful thing.

Is that the same as common sense? You know what the problem with that is?

It's not all that common.

There are some very, very special drivers on our roads, and the saying "Did you get your license out of a cornflakes box?" suddenly makes more sense than ever before.

[Drizz06]

GPS is great for finding a house in the middle of suburbia but how hard is it to follow a sign?
I drove to Echuca from Melbourne yesterday and i have done the trip before about 10years ago and there is literately a sign every 10-15km to make sure your heading the right direction and turn offs etc are clearly marked.

[fou_bleu]

A man caught driving the wrong way on a Victorian highway has told police he was following instructions from his GPS unit.

Dumb...

Meanwhile, another New South Wales driver had his car impounded after being caught doing 177 kilometres an hour on the Hume Freeway last night.

The 17-year-old P-plater told police he was speeding because his car was running out of petrol.

... Dumber.

[thefargo]

A few years back I was driving from Adelaide to Katherine. In the dark, early hours the gps told me to do a u-turn. I was on the Stuart Hwy in the middle of nowhere. Funnily enough I turned it down, did not turn around, and STILL made it to Katherine.
But yes, it was helpful once I got there. I had to find my brother-in-laws house and I had never been to Katherine before.

[svo supporter]

Recently, VIC had dramas with the GPS being wrong, so he decided to blame the GPS for his current predicament

[Jim Goose]

Originally Posted by flappist

It is ironic that those who so strongly advocate following instructions without questioning or applying logical reasoning regardless of situation or conditions such as speed limits etc. are confounded by the actions of those who do incredibly stupid things because they were following instructions without questioning or applying logical reasoning regardless of situation or conditions.........

Gee personal jibe again? funny as a mod what you can say on here isnt it without fear that it will be deleted ?

[BENT_8]

Originally Posted by flappist

It is ironic that those who so strongly advocate following instructions without questioning or applying logical reasoning regardless of situation or conditions such as speed limits etc. are confounded by the actions of those who do incredibly stupid things because they were following instructions without questioning or applying logical reasoning regardless of situation or conditions.........

Not at all, following instruction from a GPS for direction is nothing like following laws governing the use of the road.

One is advice and can be ignored at will, the other is law and not negotiable.

[DJM83]

Seems common sense aint all that common looking at some of the posts in here. Along with some people that are model citizens on the road.