Common Sense – My Favourite Explanation of Behaviour

When someone does something we want, we often explain it by saying they were using their common sense, and when they don’t, we explain it that they didn’t use their common sense. Unfortunately, when we explain behaviour because of common sense, we explain nothing.

ARTICLE

Driver lacked ‘common sense’

By SHAHRA WALSH – The Press

A Christchurch rail bridge was struck by an oversized truck yesterday, the third time in nine months.

The truck became “wedged” about 10.30am yesterday under the Martindales Rd bridge in Heathcote, causing delays for railway operators, OnTrack bridge inspector Buzz Terrey said. The bridge is on the main line from the West Coast to Port Lyttelton.

The truck had to be cut into pieces and its tyres deflated so it could be removed. .

Speed restrictions were put in place for trains using the line as engineers braced the bridge with timber. The one-lane road under the bridge will be closed for up to a week.

Terrey said $40,000 worth of repairs and reinforcement work had only recently been completed on the bridge after it was hit in December.

It was also struck by a truck in June and before that in 2004 and 2005.

The owner of the transport company involved yesterday, Philip Wareing, said the driver was not hurt, but the truck’s canopy was a “writeoff”.

“It’s just a lack of common sense; there were signs up to say [the clearance was] 3.75 metres and he’s driven long enough to know he’s four metres,” Wareing said.