That would be my guess as well.
Engineering the art of compromise.
Also, safety is a relative and changing concept. In the late 19th century, in the age of sail, it was considered quite normal to lose a sailor or two on a long voyage. they climbed the rigging and accidents were common. If a sailor fell on deck he was probably dead or maimed for life. If he fell in the water the chances of recovering him were slim... even if they tried and many times they didn't because it might be considered too risky with little chance of recovering him.
Up into the 1930s building bridges and other structures the risk of death was just considered part of the job. No safety equipment and no real accident prevention. It was a very different mentality.
Today we build a tunnel and it is two tunnels plus one or two service tunnels, etc. And build with much greater safety in mind. The culture has changed. Electrical appliances and installations from 60, 80, 100 years ago were extremely dangerous by the standards of today.
It is easy to see how the mentality of safety in general has changed in developed nations. Just go to some third world countries and you still see a mentality that any money or effort expended in safety and prevention is money and effort wasted.
Safety costs money and it is good if you can pay for it. The richer we become the more safety we can afford. Which is good.