Luxury, Labor, and the Grid: Why the Future Is a Series of Hard Tradeoffs

A six-wheel Lexus that treats the back seat like a boardroom. Hundreds of thousands of Americans working well into their 80s. Hydropower storage poised to shore up a shaky grid. It sounds like three different stories, but they all point to the same reality: our future hinges on better design, smarter tradeoffs, and respect for the laws of physics.

We start with the Lexus LS concept, a seven-seat “personal sanctuary” that pushes the rear wheels to create a lounge-like cabin and provide simultaneous access to the second and third rows. The engineering is bold—twin small rear wheels, long sliding doors, and rear steering to tame a huge wheelbase—but comfort collides with cold-weather clearance, body roll, and tight streets. We explore who this is really for, when autonomy makes sense, and why every luxury choice triggers a cascade of compromises in handling, safety, and cost.

Then we turn to longevity at work: 550,000 Americans in their 80s and 90s are still on the job. Some choose purpose, many need a paycheck, and too many employers overlook the value of seasoned talent. We unpack shifting retirement ages, savings gaps, and practical ways businesses can harness mentorship, flexible roles, and upskilling to keep wisdom in the building rather than losing it at the door.

Energy rounds out the story with pumped-storage hydropower, a proven grid-scale battery that pumps water uphill when power is cheap and releases it during peak demand. The newly licensed 1.2 GW Goldendale project shows how to anchor renewables, reduce reliance on peakers, and stabilize prices. While the world surges ahead, U.S. development has lagged; we outline why that must change and how closed-loop designs, smart siting, and pairing with wind and solar can accelerate clean capacity.

We close with rail safety, where mass and momentum rule. At-grade crossings remain deadly, especially private ones with minimal warning signs. The rule is simple: stop, look, and listen—you cannot beat a train.

If this mix of mobility, longevity, and energy resilience resonates, follow the TechMobility Show, share it with a friend, and leave a review with your biggest takeaway so we can bring more conversations that matter to your feed.

Transcript

SPEAKER_01 0:07

Welcome to the Tech Mobility Podcast. Brought to you by Playbook Investors Network. Your strategic partner for unstoppable growth.

SPEAKER_02 0:15

Visit pincommunity.org to get started. I'm Ken Chester. On the docket, working past four score. Hydropower has had an American moment. And meeting the train. To join the conversation by asking a question, sharing an opinion, or even suggesting a topic for future discussion, call or text the Tech Mobility Hotline, that number, 872-222-9793, or you can email the show directly. Talk at Techmobility.show. For those of you that like Substack, you can find me at Ken C I O W A as a proud member of the Iowa Writers Collaborative

Lexus's Six-Wheel Sanctuary

SPEAKER_02 1:06

from the Tech Mobility News Desk. It has six wheels. It seats seven people. It is considered a personal sanctuary. And it was developed by a major luxury Japanese manufacturer. The challenge is you can't buy that in the United States. It's called the Lexus LS concept. And they talked about how it reimagined a flagship model, and it's a six-wheel personal sanctuary. And there, this is a concept, and they said that one size doesn't fit all, even for premium automakers/ship models. This lounge-like six-wheel, seven-seat vehicle is described by Lexis as the LS concept, and they describe it as the exclusive personal sanctuary. Here's my question. How much sanctuary do you need? Because obviously, with something like this, the person enjoying it won't be driving it. Because, of course, in Japan, a lot of these luxury vehicles have chauffeurs. And this six this six-wheeled seven-passenger vehicle would be no different. When the LS was first launched back in 1989, can you imagine? The Detroit Auto Show. The nameplate stood for luxury sedan. Lexus has changed that now. LS means now. Lexus says it listened to customers and redefining the idea of a flagship model and designed the LS concept to focus on the ultimate in passenger comfort. And it does it looks like nothing you've ever seen before. You've not seen a Lexus look like this. First of all, you've got two sets of smaller wheels at the back of the vehicle, and they were pushed all the way back to create a wide open space for passengers. And this is Lexus. Our research found that in chauffeur-driven vehicles, the VIP sits in the second row, but he has to wait for his staff members to reach the third row. And he actually becomes the last one to get in. To avoid that problem, Lexus started with a clean sheet of paper to put that VIP at the center of the action in the LS concept. They said that the first logical decision was to create two very long sliding doors to permit simultaneous access to the second and third row of seats. Lexus did not want to compromise on the size and features of the second row, which is made up of two adjoining captain's chairs that also recline as business class seats. Accessibility to the third row would have been made difficult or more difficult by the rear wheel arches. We tried to push the rear wheels outward as much as possible to get more interior space, but it wasn't working. So we decided to replace a large wheel with two smaller wheels, put at the very end of the vehicle. Would you buy something like this? In the way that our traffic is. And I could understand. Now I'll tell you what would really work for this thing to be awesome is to have it be autonomous. And that way, if you were, say, a mid-level exec traveling city to city, visiting plants, having meetings, it would be another opportunity to be able to get work done in a very private space and be very efficient, even more efficient than even air flight, because now you wouldn't have to deal with airports, but at the same time, you wouldn't have to deal with traffic because the traffic now becomes a moot issue. Because you're there well connected with, I would imagine, the ability to plug in a laptop or a computer. You might even have some sort of satellite capability on top of the thing. And you would be able to basically, this would be your office wherever you were. Could be pretty cool, though. While this unusual layout solved the interior space issue, it also created additional technical challenges. Double rear wheels reduced pitch or four and half motion, but they also increased body roll. And given the significant weight of each of the small four rear wheels, delivering good vehicle ride comfort became an issue. Also, decent dynamic performance was not easy to reach given the short travel rear suspension chosen to maximize interior space, meaning that it wouldn't take bumps very well. In addition, if that wasn't enough, the resulting long wheelbase increases the turning cycle. So to improve maneuverability, Lexus designed a rear steering system for the twin wheels. This is not unusual. In fact, I can point out where this was actually offered on a variety of vehicles even before the start of this new millennia. You may not remember, but if you go back to the late 80s, early 90s, certain uh models of the Mazda 6 had the ability of the rear wheels to turn slightly to improve high-speed performance. By the turn of the century, the GMCC3 also had the ability with the wheels to turn in order to promote to promote or improve a tighter radius, particularly when you're backing in stuff, if you've got a trailer or something, to give you more control. So this is not unusual for automakers who have done this. Uh, it is unusual in that the approach Lexus was taking with respect to two small wheels at the back making that happen. The question I got is how would this thing perform in the wintertime? Because it's that close to the ground, number one, you've got smaller rear wheels, number two, and you're taking a lot of ability because you don't have much road clearance. So if you don't have much road clearance, is this something you'd even run in the wintertime? Or maybe you just keep it to the southern part of the country. Because honestly, where people get snow, I can see this thing having a real problem because of clearance, because of weight, because of the size of it. These are all the things automakers have to think about when they're developing a new vehicle. That to solve one problem, sometimes you create one or two more that have to be solved. That is why a lot of times you'll see a vehicle that was a list of compromises. In other words, we wanted this, but to get this, we had to do that. To do that, we had to do this other thing. So we had to make decisions about what was more important to the consumer, to the product, to the price of what we're trying to sell this for, and also make it dependable, reliable, affordable, uh, that you can maintain it. All these things come together. And even they respond to it, Lexus quotes, as engineers, we're taking on that challenge to make it a reality and make it work. In addition, the resulting long wheelbase, what I said, increased the turning cycle. So there's that. And they didn't specify just how long of it would be. But if you're familiar, we talked about their upward uh exclusive brand there in Japan is called the Toyota Century, which is their above top of the line executive limo type vehicle. But I'm gonna argue that this thing is probably longer than a Siena, but maybe as much as another third or fourth. I can't imagine this being totally practical, but to give you an idea, they're expecting this when it comes to market roughly, because they're gonna build it. They're building it. It cost between $150,000 to $180,000 a piece. A private oasis, relaxation, and luxury. And they expect to sell it in a number of countries. I still wonder how this thing would do in the wintertime. For most Americans, the age 65 signifies the start of retirement, but not everyone sees it that way. You are listening to the Tech Mobility Show.

SPEAKER_00 9:55

In business, opportunity doesn't wait, and neither should you. At Playbook Investors Network, we connect visionary entrepreneurs with the strategies, resources, and capital they need to win. Whether you're launching, scaling, or reimagining your business, our network turns ambition into measurable success. Your vision deserves more than a plan, it deserves a playbook that works. Playbook Investors Network, where bold ideas meet bold results. Visit pincommunity.org today.

SPEAKER_01 10:26

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SPEAKER_02 10:59

To learn more about the Tech Mobility Show, start by visiting our website. I'm Ken Chester, host of the Tech Mobility Show. The website is a treasure trove of information about me and the show, as well as where to find it on the radio across the country. Keep up with the happenings of the Tech Mobility Show by visiting Techmobility.show. You can also drop us a line at talk at TechMobility.show.

SPEAKER_00 11:32

That's where Playbook Investors Network comes in. We're your strategic partner for accelerating growth, navigating challenges, and capturing market opportunities before your competition does. Your business is more than an idea. Let's make it an impact. Playbook Investors Network. Your future starts here. Learn more at pincommunity.org. These people, huh? You know, I found that anger is the enemy of instruction. You don't know the egos that I have to deal with. You're probably right.

SPEAKER_01 12:10

Thank you. Whoever you are. Pretty sure that was still Jackson. He's quite famous. Million Championships, Triangle Offense Innovator. The Audi A8, named Best Large Luxury Sedan.

SPEAKER_00 12:21

Nice wheels, Zenmaster. Thank you.

SPEAKER_02 12:27

The last word and understatement, if you can imagine. Phil Jackson, and this guy didn't know Phil Jackson. Phil Jackson, for those of you that are not of a certain age, uh led the uh Chicago Bulls basketball team to with led by Michael Jordan, which my daughter adores, to many championships, and then went on to do even more beyond that. Legendary in his own time. So a commercial where guy at that period of time didn't even know who he was. Perfect commercial for the Audi A8, which suggests that it has capabilities far beyond what most people assume. What an understated way of presenting luxury. You know, it's the underlying message, which I thought was pretty cool.

Working Beyond 65: Who And Why

SPEAKER_02 13:19

Ever since the Social Security Act was signed into law in 1935, Americans have recognized the age of 65 as being the official start of one's retirement years. Well, that is true for many people. A growing number of Americans find themselves still active in the workforce for many years past that age. As you might expect, the reasons differ, but not in the way you might think. This is topic A. I want to give you a number. The number is 550,000. That is the number of Americans currently working past 80 years old in industries like education, construction, and religious services. And this is a business insider anal uh analyst um analysis of Census Bureau data. 550,000. People working in their 80s and 90s. And this cohort is one of the fastest growing demographics in the workforce. And the percentage of people working into their 80s and 90s are expected to grow over the next decade. When Social Security was started, people barely lived to 65. If you're a person of a certain age, you already know that 65 is great for starting to get Medicare, but it's not actually what you call your full retirement age. If you were born after 1958, actually, your full retirement age was 66 years, eight months. And if you're older than if you're younger than that, it's older than that. Most people don't even realize that the retirement age has been creeping up uh gradually over the last several years. But yet these people are working even beyond that. So why is that? Part of that is because even though Social Security was created to be a safety net, and indeed uh there are statistics that show that Social Security has delivered a lot of Americans that otherwise would have been in poverty. If you've been working, if you're a boomer, you've been through it all. You've been through the stagflation 70s, the recession 80s, uh the 90s where stuff was changing at lightning speed. You got to a point where you thought you had something till you hit the recession of 2007-2008. And if you survived all of that, here you are. Now looking at maybe I retire, maybe I don't. You look at your numbers, you look at your reports, you check your health, and you start doing the math. And for an increasing number of people, the math says, I have to go to work. There's a very dear friend of mine, he's 80. He works a tougher schedule than most kids one-fourth his age. Not because he wants to, but because he has to. The money from Social Security is insufficient to continue even a modest lifestyle. My wife and I'm just getting to that age. We've passed our full retirement age. We're not exactly retired. Um I'm doing what I want to do, talking to you, of course, every week. But, you know, how long will I do it? Depends on my mood, I guess. And I consider myself one of the fortunate ones. Consider this. Among those 75 and older, the median income in 2022 was around $49,100, down 2% from 2019. Bear in mind that the average amount of wages paid right now is right around $50,000. So just a smidgen below average. And this is according to the recent survey of consumer finances. Median net worth among people $5,000 and older was $335,600 in 2022. An AARP survey found that one in five Americans 50 and older have no retirement savings. I would argue that that percentage is higher than that. I really would. A large subset of people working into their 80s say that they're financially stable and work just a few hours a week for supplemental income or sense of purpose. But still, many want to earn more but can't find anything beyond a lower-paying retail or nonprofit position because people are scared old folk. We're not going to kill over and die, folks. We're here to stay. His mom is 95 years old, and that woman has a hand grip that'll break your hand. Very healthy. She worked a whole life. The benefits of medicine, healthcare, just living in general, uh, and better quality of life for many of us means that there's more of us living a better quality of life as we get older. And sitting around a house all day isn't necessarily an option for a lot of folks. For what? So these folk, these older folk with years of experience and knowledge, are blessing the rest of us by sharing what they know. You may have read in the paper maybe about a couple of weeks ago, there was a lady in Maine. Uh, she was the oldest lobster person active, licensed in the state. And she recently passed at 105. And she was going out on the boats every day until she was 103, was doing it since she was eight years old. The traditional thing, if you're 20, 30, 40 years old right now, is not what you saw on TV back in the 1960s and 70s. There's a lot of good folk out there living high-quality lives in their 70s, in their 80s, and some folks even in their 90s. And they're getting around, they're living on their own, and they're sharing all this knowledge. And I think it's a shame, honestly, that so many organizations are not taking more advantage of all this knowledge that's available. All this institutional knowledge. Folks, don't let it go to waste. Old don't mean feeble. And old don't necessarily mean physically challenged. There's a lot of us getting along just fine out here. Thank you very much. And these numbers show it. Yeah, we could stand some more money who can't. And health care is an issue. That's just reality. But those things aside, many people are relatively healthy, getting a buy well. Consider it. In conversations about alternative energy, hydropower, which has been around seemingly forever, is having an American moment. This is the Tech Mobility Show.

SPEAKER_00 20:55

You've got the drive, you've got the vision. Now you need the right partner to make it happen. At Playbook Investors Network, we power ambitious leaders with the tools, insight, and investment connections to move faster, grow stronger, and lead markets. We're more than advisors, we're your co-pilots in success. Because in business, standing still is not an option. Playbook Investors Network, fueling ambition, delivering results. Visit pincommunity.org.

SPEAKER_02 21:27

Did you know that Tech Mobility has a YouTube channel? Hi, I'm Ken Chester, host of the Tech Mobility Show. Each week, I upload a few short videos of some of the hot topics that I cover during my weekly radio program. I've designed these videos to be informative and entertaining. It's another way to keep up on current mobility and technology news and information. Be sure to watch, like, and subscribe to my channel. That's the Tech Mobility Show on YouTube. Check it out.

Hydropower’s Pumped Storage Moment

SPEAKER_02 21:57

Water. More precise running water. Running water was something that settlers, as they went west, settling, determining where they were going to put down roots, was a big deal. Why? One, it sustained communities. It provided water for plant life, for bathing, for cleaning, for washing, for whatever. It also, running water, provided an opportunity to turn a wheel, to run a mill, to grind grain, to produce or manufacture stuff because running water. It was cheap. It was free. Where I grew up in New England, you see, even to this day, many streams and rivers had dams across them because of grain and wheels that captured the water and did work. The manipulate even the manipulation of standing water, like running it from a lake down a sluice, that's how cold that is how gold miners made their fortune. By channeling water and running it across some stuff to separate the dirt from the gold. All of this usually was the first requirement in looking over new land to settle. Running water not only meant literal survival, but it, like I said, it meant power to run grinding mills and manufacturing plants of all kinds. Long before wood, oil, coal, wind, solar, even nuclear, it was water. And it seems this form of energy may be making a comeback. This is topic B. Now the example I gave you would be probably the simple example. But now we've got something called hydropower pump storage. And the first large-scale project in over 40 years just got greenlighted in Washington State. Let me explain what it is. Pump storage is basically hydropower with a twist. Water is pumped to a higher elevation pool while electricity rates are lower, such as night or early morning. Then is released to turn the power turbines and generate power when demand is at its highest. In this one case, it talked about a 1.2 gigawatt Goldendale energy storage project. And again, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission gave it a 40-year license to operate. And it's going to operate at the site of a former aluminum smelter in Cliquitat County, Washington. And in this site, the powerhouse will be in an underground cavern. It will be centered around three 40 megawatt Francis type pump type pump turbine units. The top elevation pool will cover 60 acres. It's not a small pool. 60 acres. The elevation will be 2,950 feet above sea level. While the same-size lower pool is at 590 feet with the three turbines located in between the two elevations. The North American Electric Reliability Council, their most recent report indicates internal demand throughout the Northwest region where this is being installed is projected to grow at an annual rate of 1.61% from 2025 to 2034. During the same period, the anticipated reserve capacity margin, that means generating capacity and excessive demand is forecasted to decrease from 38.7% this year to 4.6% in 2034. What that means is standby power to come online in case of demand spikes or other outages. And they like to have a lot of gap there. They like to have a lot of cushion. And 4.6% is not a lot of cushion. They said that the Goldendales entire project site, the whole thing, is going to cover 700 acres, 530 owned by the former smelter, and about 18 owned by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. The upper reservoir will be in the Columbia Hills area above and to the north of the Columbia River. Project owners and operators will purchase 7,640 acre feet of water from the Clickatat Public Utility District to initially fill the reservoir. Think about this for a minute. Given, because it's in the Pacific Northwest, and assuming that they don't have a ridiculously hot summer, which would have evaporation issues, this theoretically could be considered a literal closed loop. Water gets pumped to the top reservoir. During the day it runs down, generates electricity to the lower reservoir, then at night gets pumped up. The article does not talk about what losses would be during the course of a summer or a winter in case of evaporation. I don't know what evaporative losses would be. Does not say. But this is a thing now. This this pumped storage hydropower is considered the world's largest, most proven form of energy storage. And I would argue it's a twist on one of the oldest forms of energy production. And it's a re and not just Washington. Washington was the example that I gave you, but it's actually having a resurgence around the globe. As of 2024, approximately 214 gigawatts of these projects are in various stages of development worldwide. Bear in mind the one I just talked to you about was 1.2 gigawatts. Right now, around the world, these pump storage hydropower projects, there are 204 represent 214 gigawatts of power that developing to bring online. Think about this. None of that will require the burning of coal, oil, natural gas. And if they do it right, in a perfect world, they put it maybe next to a wind field or a solar field where it's pulling that energy during the day, storing it in a battery, using the battery power at night to run the pumps, to pump the water to the top, then it's green. It's a green virtual loop. There's a lot more going on, folks, than just wind farms, than just solar farms, than just nuclear. Folks are looking at all kinds of different power applications because regardless of where you are and regardless of what you think, one size does not fit all. Can you imagine? However, let me come back to the United States for a minute. While pump storage is expanding globally, U.S. construction is stalled for decades. The last major facility before this one was the Bath County Pump Storage Station in Virginia. It broke ground my freshman year in college back in 1977. And it was completed in 1985 at a cost then of $1.6 billion. Now, over the past decade, U.S. pump storage capacity has grown by 1.4 gigawatts. 97% of that coming from upgrades to existing plants rather than new processes. So this new plant coming online will almost double what we got in the United States, this one new project. You would think that we would be looking at everything because we've got power needs. We've documented that here. And to do it cleanly, to do it where it makes sense, where it helps everybody, is a better way to approach it. A smart approach to alternative power instead of the knee-jerk traditional approach of let's burn more stuff. Railroads and railroad crossings. There are hundreds of thousands of them in the United States. We talk about why it matters. We are the Tech Mobility Show.

SPEAKER_01 30:53

Are you tired of juggling multiple apps and platforms for meetings, webinars, and staying connected? Look no further than AON Meetings.com, the all-in-one browser-based platform that does it all. With AON Meetings, you can effortlessly communicate with clients, post virtual meetings and webinars, and stay in touch with family and friends, all in one place and for one price. Here's the best part. You can enjoy a 30-day free trial. It's time to simplify your life and boost your productivity. AON Meetings.com where Innovation Meets Connection. Get started today and revolutionize the way you communicate.

SPEAKER_02 31:26

To learn more about the Tech Mobility Show, start by visiting our website. Hi, I'm Ken Chester, host of the Tech Mobility Show. The website is a treasure trove of information about me and the show, as well as where to find it on the radio across the country. Keep up with the happenings at the Tech Mobility Show by visiting Techmobility.show. That's Techmobility.show. You can also drop us a line at talk at Techmobility.show.

SPEAKER_00 31:56

In business, opportunity doesn't wait, and neither should you. At Playbook Investors Network, we connect visionary entrepreneurs with the strategies, resources, and capital they need to win. Whether you're launching, scaling, or reimagining your business, our network turns ambition into measurable success. Your vision deserves more than a plan. It deserves a playbook that works. Playbook Investors Network, where bold ideas meet bold results. Visit pincommunity.org today.

SPEAKER_02 32:28

Did you know that Tech Mobility has a YouTube channel? Hi, I'm Ken Chester, host of the Tech Mobility Show. Each week, I upload a few short videos of some of the hot topics that I cover during my weekly radio program. I've designed these videos to be informative and entertaining. It's another way to keep up on current mobility and technology news and information. Be sure to watch, like, and subscribe to my channel. That's the Tech Mobility Show on YouTube. Check it out.

Rail Crossings: Risk And Reality

SPEAKER_02 32:57

If you've been listening to this program for any reasonable amount of time, you know I love trains. I love railroads. I love them since a little kid. Always love them. I can't afford it, I can't afford it as a hobby, but I love trains. I want to talk about railroads and railroad crossings, the real stuff. According to data from the Federal Railroad Administration and the Federal Highway Administration, there are approximately 212,000 open at grade highway railroad crossings in the United States. What does that mean? It means that there are tracks that cross roads. I don't mean a bridge, I mean literally cross the road. Now, these crossings are located across 140,000 miles of railroad track. And while more than 50% of the public at grade crossings are equipped with automatic warning devices, such as gates and flashing lights and sounds, and the fact that many of these also require an oncoming train to sound their horn, incidents at these crossings are the second leading cause of railroad related fatalities and injuries in the United States. I think we need to talk about it. This is topic C. Let me get into this. And let me first bring this down a little bit. Of those 212,000 active open at Great Highway Railroad crossings, only 130,000 of them are public crossings. While a significant number of others are private. What does that mean? It means, and it happens a lot out here in Iowa, you might live, literally live, next to an active railroad. Your driveway from the highway to your house may require you to cross this railroad. That is considered a private crossing. If you're lucky, most of these crossings at least will have some sort of indicator. Problem is trains are not always required to blow the whistle crossing these private crossings. Problem is, if this is an active rail line and I'm talking about main line as opposed to a branch line, it is easy to take it for granted. The problem is, folks, if you see, if you're getting ready to cross a rail line, even on a back road, unless the tray unless the tracks have been torn up and the things are gone, you should assume there is a train close by, whether you hear it or not. Too many people take their lives into their hands and they don't even think about it. I started this piece because of something I ran across in progressive railroading. And it talked about annual grade crossing coverage. And it talked about in December, BNSF Railroad marked their 7,000th grade crossing. It had closed across its network since 2000. It's a big deal to them. Why is it? Every crossing that they can eliminate where the public is at risk of crossing their lines means less of a chance of a truck, a car, an individual, a child getting hit by a train. What they mean by separating at-grade crossings, they may put, they may take the railroad and build a bridge over the road or the road over the railroad, but they separate what they call separate the crossing. So it is not an at-grade crossing. And by doing that, they eliminate or significantly reduce the risk of an accident. If you've been online and if you've been at Facebook, wherever, you have seen the reels of people, of truckers over and over getting stuck on rail lines, not having sense, not paying attention, not looking at what's going on, and it ending very badly. To y'all that feel you can outrun a train, listen to Ken. No, you can't. It will never end well. Ever. If you get that careless, let me help you. The average railroad freight train, the engines themselves, each engine that you see weighs 265 tons. Let's start there. It's pulling a light train, is probably two to three thousand tons that it's pulling. If it's running at 10 miles an hour, it will take hundreds of feet for it to stop after it hit you. You've seen the videos of folks trying to wave a train down. If they're running, if this is a mainline freight and they're running 35, 40 miles an hour, you can forget it. It's going to take them over a mile to stop that train, even if the engineer hits the brakes the minute he sees you. It's already too late. You cannot stop all that weight. And let me add this if it's a coal train, you're looking at closer to 10,000 tons, and you can forget about it. They can't stop. That is why major railroads will do everything in their power to separate grade crossings. They don't want them either. Too many people died. Let me give you a statistic. Every day, every single day, eight people or vehicles are hit by a train. Let me give you another number. 96% of rail related fatalities over the last 10 years are due to highway rail grade crossings and trespassing incidents. 400 folks die. In the last 25 years from trespassing on railroad property, people, you ain't gotta beat the physics. Trains don't stop on a dime. They cannot. They can't swerve, they're on rails. Even a slow train coming at you is way dangerous than you might imagine. It is dangerous. And oh, let me correct that. I said that's 400 trespass fatalities every year. Let me correct myself. Yeah. Trespassing along railroad rights of way is the leading cause of rail-related deaths in America. It's preventable. You're not gonna outrun a train. You're not gonna win. Ever win. It doesn't matter how big a vehicle you drive in. It doesn't matter how fast a vehicle you've got. It doesn't know I know I can beat them to the crossing. That's a fool's errand. It will not happen. It's not safe. Every day, eight people or vehicles, every single day. Since I'm in Iowa, let me make this real personal. In Iowa, 4,042 public at-grade railroad crossings, eight 1,839 active crossings have active warning devices. We have 2,399 private acraid crossings. Those are the ones you worry about. They don't have lights, they don't have whistles, they don't have sound. And if you're lucky, they got a sign. Be careful. If there's ever been a train on that, assume. Even if it's infrequent, assume that there's a train there. Stop, look, and listen. It's more than just a phrase, it's a way to live. Stop, look, and listen. Because the life you save may be your own or your families or somebody you care about. You're not going to beat a train every.

SPEAKER_00 41:54

Playbook Investors Network. Your future starts here. Learn more at pincommunity.org.

SPEAKER_02 42:03

To learn more about the Tech Mobility Show, start by visiting our website. I'm Ken Chester, host of the Tech Mobility Show. The website is a treasure trove of information about me and the show, as well as where to find it on the radio across the country. Keep up with the happenings at the Tech Mobility Show by visiting Techmobility.show. You can also drop us a line and talk at TechMobility.show.

SPEAKER_01 42:28

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SPEAKER_00 43:02

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