I had never seen one of these before today. They’re great. Way better than reaching for a single pole in a crowded car and wrapping your hand around some stranger’s fingers. And If you have the whole thing to yourself you can hook your arm through it.
Even if you hit emergency stop, they don’t stop like a car. They take a while to slow down.
Here are some trains nerds talking about e brake times.
https://www.railroad.net/braking-deceleration-distance-or-time-of-wmata-trains-t164252.html
I was thinking more like a crash or something…
Which is pretty rare for a commuter train system with tracks that are often underground or raised above road traffic.