Dashcams Don't Lie

Gary Hatt - Publisher BCM · August 06, 2016, 02:37:02 PM

Don't let this happen to you without a way of recording it with a system from www.operationsaferoad.com.

https://www.facebook.com/dashcamclips/videos/1655503114701424/

jackhartjr · August 06, 2016, 07:03:23 PM

A friend has had two minor incidents this year in his big truck that would have surely cost him, had he not had the camera!

DoubleEagle · August 06, 2016, 07:10:31 PM

The driver that pulled out did not judge well and is primarily at fault, but the oncoming driver did not react with braking very well, no rubber marks on the pavement, no jake brake growl, no horn, and excessive speed approaching a busy intersection. This excellent view will help resolve a messy insurance claim. Looks like the bus driver narrowly missed being smacked by a trailer!

Dave5Cs · August 06, 2016, 09:00:19 PM

On coming driver did what should have been done to stay alive just keep moving forward. Had he hit the brakes he would have spun and rolled it. IMHO

Dave

eagle19952 · August 07, 2016, 10:16:41 AM

Quote from: Dave5Cs on August 06, 2016, 09:00:19 PM
On coming driver did what should have been done to stay alive just keep moving forward. Had he hit the brakes he would have spun and rolled it. IMHO
Dave

try this one

https://www.facebook.com/epicposts/videos/1544700862505701/

jackhartjr · August 07, 2016, 11:28:22 AM

I've seen that video a bunch of times, it appears that the oncoming driver braked and went right!

DoubleEagle · August 07, 2016, 12:27:38 PM

Quote from: Dave5Cs on August 06, 2016, 09:00:19 PM
On coming driver did what should have been done to stay alive just keep moving forward. Had he hit the brakes he would have spun and rolled it. IMHO
Dave

Nah, I still think the oncoming tractor trailer did not slow enough coming up to the intersection, and did not slow enough when the other tractor headed out. The oncoming tractor faced having the most damage going straight into the rear of the trailer and suffering possible injury. He might have even had the opportunity to steer to the right enough to miss. I seriously doubt that he would have spun & rolled, most newer trucks have ABS brakes. He could have used his trolley brake to lock up the trailer wheels to keep it straight. He could have done more than he did, and I base this on 45 years of Class A license experience.

jackhartjr · August 07, 2016, 04:08:31 PM

Walter, look again, he went right! look at his position relative to the lane!

kyle4501 · August 07, 2016, 05:55:10 PM

What was the posted speed limit?
What speed reduction would have allowed him to stop in 2, maybe 3 truck lengths? Don't omit the distance used while reacting.

Lots of options to choose from in a situation like this. No time to think it over, only react. What if the oncoming driver thought he saw something else & was trying to avoid that too . . . .

Looks to me like he tried to slow down & move over as best he could while maintaining control . . . . .
Hard for me to find any real fault with the oncoming driver when it was the other driver's choice that caused the collision.

Brain farts can be expensive . . . .

Gary Hatt - Publisher BCM · August 07, 2016, 06:06:58 PM

I watched the video several times and it seems to me that the oncoming truck driver was moving pretty fast, which the truck driver that pulled out across lanes may have mis-calculated when he would arrive just in time for the accident scene. After so many cars before that were going pretty slow, it may have been deceiving.

Maybe the truck with the dash cam, noticed this high rate of speed which is why he did not follow the car immediately after they turned. We can only speculate.

DoubleEagle · August 07, 2016, 06:49:14 PM

Quote from: jackhartjr on August 07, 2016, 04:08:31 PM
Walter, look again, he went right! look at his position relative to the lane!

I did, he may have moved a little, but not enough, assuming it was possible to get over. The truck behind him did fine. I really think he was going too fast for the situation, did not recognize the hazard soon enough, and did not react soon enough. He might have been heavily loaded for all we know. It looks like the camera vehicle was a truck (freightliner is my guess, judging by the fender mirror), I had assumed it was a bus at first. Well, it looks like we have analyzed the hell out of this video, now we need to see the police report to get the final word.

Dave5Cs · August 07, 2016, 08:45:21 PM

And I still say the On coming driver did what should have been done to stay alive, just keep moving forward. Had he hit the brakes he would have spun and rolled it. IMHO

and I base this on 46 years of OTR truck and Bus Crash Statistics

Dave

sixtyseven · August 08, 2016, 12:58:29 AM

I live a few miles from there. It's a bad intersection, every time I go through there I see a near miss. You guys already analyzed it, I just want to add info. The posted speed is 65, which is totally stupid for that spot. The oncoming driver got over to the right as far as possible without going over an embankment. 99 percent of the truck traffic makes a right turn there so the guy that caused it was stupid enough to assume he was turning.

bigred · August 08, 2016, 05:59:28 AM

Must have hit the trailer square on the wheels.Any where else ,he would have went through the trailer.

DoubleEagle · August 08, 2016, 06:26:31 AM

All of this discussion is excellent driver training that helps us avoid similar situations in the future, it really points out the value of dashcams. Even when we all see the same video, we have different interpretations of what happened. It's no wonder that eyewitness accounts result in different stories. As sixtyseven pointed out, a good theory is that the driver that pulled out assumed that the other truck was turning, and maybe the other driver assumed that he would clear the intersection before he got there. As Tony Randall once beautifully pointed out on the Odd Couple show, when you assume, you make an (@$#) out of (u) and (me)!