Posted on 03/19/2006 6:36:26 PM PST by Coleus
We swam in Y states last year in Flushing. How sad that the whole competition should be marred by something like this. That's really going to shake everybody up. The competition was always friendly as far as I could see; kind of like a big family. The kids often had friends on other teams that they'd see a few times a year at meets.
I don't understand why she wouldn't have pulled over on the shoulder. The NYS Thruway has wide shoulders for the whole length as far as I know so this doesn't make sense..
There was construction underway (in fact, I warned people here about that yesterday). This triggers the $500 minimum fine for exceeding 50 MPH, and may also start the points clock running.
So, there we were, going South, and we'd already gotten to the HOV lanes. As we went past the point where the highway workers had narrowed I395 to 1 lane, and everybody was to turn right, there were 5 Virginia state trooper cars parked!
Wow~!!! And they already had folks lined up for violating the speed limit ~ including trucks.
We pulled off the road shortly, and went around to a restaurant for breakfast. There were 10 Fairfax County troopers parked there getting ready for their relief shift where they'd get their chance to ticket speeders, tailgaters, and assorted other miscreants who can read neither signs nor their driver's education booklets available at DMV offices everywhere.
Let me tell you, those cops were pumped today.
Now, what was that about people taking risks? You really should not take a risk with other people's lives.
Truck didn't stop.
The interstates around Chicago have "breakdown zones". They also post signs that you are to go to the "breakdown zone" and wait.
What do you do about cars with no brake lights?
You can keep the correct distance by slowing down. Simple as that.
I have done that, too, on CDL holders. They could lose their job if they lose their CDL. The troopers notify their company.
Anything can happen.
If only it was that simple. I try but it's a constant thing. The most alarming are the ones that pass on the shoulder or part the "red sea" and then whip in front of you to avoid a head on collision. There are always exceptions. I would not fault a driver, (if I was on a jury) that was going the speed limit but was unable to stop for the extremly unexpected.
Who are you? :')
Just someone who'se driven in rush hour traffic going Southwest out of Houston, TX ~ musta' seen half a dozen such events there ~ is that a custom, or what. Only other place they do that regularly is Metro New York.
Anytime I'm in traffic and have to brake, the first thing I always do is look in my rear view mirror to see if the guy behind me is slowing down. You gotta look behind you too.
Houston is the worse about switching lanes and slowing traffic:') Seriously, the law may not be on his side but I doubt you or anyone else could have stopped an 18 wheeler on a dime like that, even if you had the space. By the time you processed she was completely stopped it would have been too lateIMO.
Well there you go. He obviously failed to maintain at least a 735 car following distance ;'}
Deserves today's Darwin award
The stupidity of these mothers is just mind-boggling. Local media are attributing the accident to the mother who was driving (who was killed, along with both her children) being "a new driver", while the mother sitting next to her, who had usually driven the group in the past, was an experienced driver. Truckers were frantically warning each other via CB radio for several minutes after the minivan stopped, until finally a radio-less tanker truck hit it. That was an awfully long time for the two mothers not to figure out that keeping the car at a dead stop in a lane of a fast-moving highway, was a very bad idea. And how experienced a driver do you have to be, not to grasp that this is way dangerous? They stopped due to a flat tire, not engine trouble, and it would only have taken a few seconds to get the car onto the shoulder.
That changes things a bit -- no, the minivan shouldn't have been there. But being "radio-less" is not an excuse unless the visibility was significantly obstructed (fog, blind curve, hill...). Barring any of those, I don't see how the trucker could possibly have missed the commotion in front of him, unless he was impaired in some way.
Any bets on "driver fatigue" being cited as a contributing factor?
This mom STILL doesn't get it:
http://www.nypost.com/news/regionalnews/65690.htm
"I think, maybe, he's [the truck driver] tired, he's sleeping or whatever, maybe he's talking on the phone or he's not concentrating," Lao said. "I want him to understand that he took my lovely, very nice daughter. Why doesn't he drive carefully, and look in front of him?"
Needless to say, the truck driver has not been, and will not be charged.
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