Gray Line

As concern grows over several car accidents involving the MTA's Orange Line, I'm beginning to wonder whether it's time to repaint the new bus liner.

Yes, it's careless drivers who have been slamming their cars into the Orange Line, either by running red lights or turning when they shouldn't have. But the bus' neutral color probably doesn't help, as the unique liner blends into its surroundings.

A letter to the editor in today's Daily News explains:

Stealth' buses
Re: "MTA weighs bus line cameras" (Dec. 8):

In the 1960s I was chief of flight safety for the USAF Training Command. We were experiencing too many near midair collisions, so we did a study called See and Be Seen. As a result of this study, we found that our gray and silver jet trainers were blending into the sky and scenery. Our solution was to paint the tip tanks mounted on the end of the wings fluorescent orange.

Analysis of aircraft incidents indicated that changing to a bright standout color helped prevent midair collisions. Maybe this See and Be Seen principle could be applied to the Orange Line "stealth" buses.

- Lt. Col. Eugene Martin, USAF (Ret.)

The retired Lt. Col. may have a point. I remember when United Airlines changed its logo and design scheme, and painted all of its planes in gray. Formerly easy to spot in white, those planes became less visible from the ground -- especially at night:



Thankfully, it appears United finally figured it out. The airline is now returning to a new, largely white plane color: