SilverArrow said:
Was just discussing these recent developments on TT as they have gone into quite some detailed speculation (as they usually do). The current theory re the box in the pic is that it's an additional manual override button that means that to do an override an op must physically walk out and press this button (as well as others being pressed, possibly simultaneously), thus ensuring that the batwing is physically viewed (not via cctv) every time any manual override takes place. Could be wrong but this theory seems logica.
This makes a tonne of sense, not only because it adds a layer and another individual to give the all clear, but because I think they've done something very similar to this before.
I noticed last year that Dragons Fury at Chessie had a switch or something on the other side of the station the staff had to turn. I could be wrong, but I'm sure that never used to be there, because I remember the staff on that side used to be the really enthusiastic interactive ones who had free hands.
What people don't realise, even us, is that safety alterations to rides are made all the time even without accidents occurring. If something is deemed even possible, it changes the way things are done. I bet most of the operational changes we complain about are actually rooted in H&S, comes to think of it.
Anyone seen that new gate at Vampire's exit? Lol.
All this does still beg the question of whether Smiler was ever fit for purpose, though. I can never tell if its seemingly never ending list of problems is as bad as it looks, or if they're related or coincidental. The track separation incident is still the most shocking to me - but I'm not an engineer, I don't know how likely that really was. In the wake of the crash, I can't help wonder how they knew the track had separated and to stop operations, but not that a bloody great train, visible on CCTV, was... there.
