Distracted Driving?

[Ripcord33]

So, lets start this off with a little video:

So now the discussion.

First off, This happened in Chicago area on I90 WB, not long after getting off of I294.

Besides the obvious me yelling oh shit when it happened. Here's my take on this.

Red Vehicle = Car 1

Silver SUV = Car 2

Travelling down I90 WB, in a Speed zone of 55MPH, I was doing about 62MPH, Car 1 passes me 2 lanes to my left at about 65-68MPH. Car 2 then passes me about 15 Secs later doing roughly 70-75MPH. Ahead, All 4 lanes are braking due to left lane merging traffic with the left shoulder closed for a tow truck. Car 1 slows with traffic. Meanwhile Car 2 has their head up their ass and is either Texting and Driving or something else that is causing them to not pay attention to the road. Car 2 hits car 1 at about 68-75MPH (Best guess based on debris scatter, and how hard Car 1 rolled). Car 2 keeps driving for another Mile to 1.5 Miles before stopping.

Luckily, the driver of Car 1 was fine, me and a tow truck driver helped him clear of his vehicle, both doors jammed, we had to bust out his windshield.

The way i see it, the primary causes of this crash were A: Excessive speed in a lower speed zone. & B: Distracted Driving. Car 2 never hit their brakes. Not even right after impact.

As a Semi driver, i see people do dumb shit all the time, luckily most of the time they somehow avoid crashing into people around them, People need to pay attention while driving. Driver of car 2 is lucky no one was killed. Things could have been alot worse, Car 1 could have spun back across all 4 lanes.

Feel free to discuss and/or leave your comments about distracted driving etc here

TL/DR;
People are Stupid, Get your heads out of your ass and pay attention while driving.
Dont Drive Drunk, unless you are playing a video game where you are driving/flying spaceships drunk.
Dont Drive Distracted.
DON'T KILL PEOPLE!

 

[Printimus]

You think driving up in Chicago is bad? Try driving down here in Florida. :P

 

[Ripcord33]

You think driving up in Chicago is bad? Try driving down here in Florida. :P

Oh I have, I drive all but a couple of the lower 48. Namely Cali and parts of the NE coast

 

[Montoya]

You think driving in Florida is bad?

Try driving in Italy!

 

[Montoya]

Feel free to discuss and/or leave your comments about distracted driving etc here

Do you carry medkit with you?

Whats the worst thing you have seen where you were the first responder?

 

[Radegast74]

You think driving up in Chicago is bad? Try driving down here in Florida. :P

You think driving in Florida is bad?

Try driving in Italy!

You think driving in Italy is bad? Try driving in India or Cambodia! Better yet, *don't* try driving there, just hire a driver.

 

[Radegast74]

Do you carry medkit with you?

Whats the worst thing you have seen where you were the first responder?

I'd be more interested in @Ripcord33 's description of the worst distracted drivers he has seen. I regularly see people texting while driving...heck, I remember the first time I saw somebody reading a book while driving! And this is me at car level, if he is driving a semi, then me must be able to see all sorts of things below him.

 

[Ripcord33]

Do you carry medkit with you?

Whats the worst thing you have seen where you were the first responder?

Yes, I always have a full kitbag in my rig, plus i actually am a Certified First Responder in my home state.

Worst one I saw in Person was a 4 car crash in winter weather, One of the 4 cars had 3 kids inside, and we had a rush to get everyone out as the car was smoking, and there was a real concern over a fire starting. In that same accident there were 2 deaths. Thats never an easy thing. Again, cause of the accident was a mix of winter roads, going to fast, and driving distracted.

The accident in my video is kinda funny to me, because as a truck driver, i'm limited on how long I can drive, and I was on my way back to Minnesota to go home for the weekend, but when this happened, I didn't give a 2nd thought to how much drive time I had left. I guess its just hardwired into me from how I was raised and the fact that between the military, and becoming a certified first responder, my first though in any accident is to get out and help.

I was actually involved in a multi car collision in michigan back in December I got hit from behind on an Icy I94 by another semi, push into the semi infront of me, and then 4 other cars hit the semi that hit me. First thing i did was get out and check on everyone else before i did anything. My truck is still in the shop from that wreck, 26k to get it fixed. The rig im driving currently is a loaner until mine gets fixed.

I'd be more interested in @Ripcord33 's description of the worst distracted drivers he has seen. I regularly see people texting while driving...heck, I remember the first time I saw somebody reading a book while driving! And this is me at car level, if he is driving a semi, then me must be able to see all sorts of things below him.

Well, some of the things I have seen while driving near the realm of probably shouldn't be said/written where kids might see.

Spoiler: NSFK

I've seen everything from road head to full on going to town while driving

. But the most common is always texting and driving, as well as makeup and similar things. However, I did see a van almost cause a multicar crash because the driver was trying to do something with their kids in the back seat and wasn't watching the road at all.

All of those things are why I'm so insistent on paying attention to the road, I don't care what the distraction is, I get what its like to have kids in the backseat, but for their sake, and other drivers sake, just pull over to solve the problem rather than turning around in your seat and trying to fix it while driving. As for phone distractions, unless you can use bluetooth to send/receive texts/calls, just wait until you get where you are going or pull over.

 

[Wolfy]

This reminds me of why I keep a first aid kit in my SUV.

 

[Blind Owl]

Man, I hate that shit. I may be a bit of a hypocrite, as I used to be that asshole who drove too fast everywhere and texted and whatnot. I dunno what changed, if I got older and wiser, if it's the fact that I have a family now, or maybe it's that texting and talking on the phone is illegal in most of Canada (if not all), but now that my head isn't up my ass, I see stupid shit all the time. And nothing infuriates me more that some idiot putting other people in danger because of their own ignorance or stupidity.

Good on you Ripcord for responding. You're a damn hero in my books. I'll drink a cold on in your honour tonight.

edit: you think this is bad, you should try driving in the Philippines . . .
or worse, you should see recruits learning to driver military kit: hey 19 year old kid who can barely park his daddy's civic, here's a tank

 

[Ripcord33]

Man, I hate that shit. I may be a bit of a hypocrite, as I used to be that asshole who drove too fast everywhere and texted and whatnot. I dunno what changed, if I got older and wiser, if it's the fact that I have a family now, or maybe it's that texting and talking on the phone is illegal in most of Canada (if not all), but now that my head isn't up my ass, I see stupid shit all the time. And nothing infuriates me more that some idiot putting other people in danger because of their own ignorance or stupidity.

Good on you Ripcord for responding. You're a damn hero in my books. I'll drink a cold on in your honour tonight.

edit: you think this is bad, you should try driving in the Philippines . . .
or worse, you should see recruits learning to driver military kit: hey 19 year old kid who can barely park his daddy's civic, here's a tank

yea, i started driving semi on my granpa's farm at 14, joined the army and drove HEMTT's and HETTS for them for about 6 years, now I own my own truck and get to watch stupid people drive all day

 

[Bruttle]

hey 19 year old kid who can barely park his daddy's civic, here's a tank tonk

Fixed a typo for you there...

Honestly though, as easy as it is to both achieve and keep a license here in the states, it's not surprising that this stuff happens all the time. Where I live, there's ice and snow on the road ~5 months out of the year. It never ceases to amaze me how people drive even though they know it's on ice. They drive 5 over the speed limit, tailgate other vehicles, make erratic movements, and always brake at the last second instead of playing it safe. That last one really bugs me. It's not like you're saving any time by zooming up and braking at the last second. You're still gonna sit at that stoplight and fking wait...

The best part is, they drive like the ice has all the traction in the world and take tons of risk. Yet when they step out of the vehicle and have to walk on it, they act like they're walking on eggshells. They are so very careful when they risk falling, but so incredibly reckless when they're zipping down the road in a two ton vehicle, putting everyone's life at risk...

EDIT: And yes, I agree with everyone else here. Ripcord, you're the man for stepping out and helping. I can't help but hope someone like you is around if anything happens to my girls. It's why I stop, carry a medkit, carry tools, and carry concealed. The world is full of people that are the most important thing to someone else. We need more people like you out there that are willing to help strangers. Well done sir, well done.

 

[Printimus]

You think driving in Italy is bad? Try driving in India or Cambodia! Better yet, *don't* try driving there, just hire a driver.

Greece..... like on the island of Crete....good god those people almost die everyday when the hop on their scooters.

 

[Printimus]

Oh I have, I drive all but a couple of the lower 48. Namely Cali and parts of the NE coast

Cali isnt terrible, they just drive fast.

 

[Radegast74]

Cali isnt terrible, they just drive fast.

Unfortunately, I have to disagree...people drive fast & they are distracted. I'll never forget the time somebody was coming on the highway and almost merged right into us...I looked over, and the kid was reading something on his phone...

My sister calls stop signs "Facebook update time" because people either seem to run them, or stay stopped mysteriously for long periods of time.

 

[Wolfy]

Unfortunately, I have to disagree...people drive fast & they are distracted. I'll never forget the time somebody was coming on the highway and almost merged right into us...I looked over, and the kid was reading something on his phone...

My sister calls stop signs "Facebook update time" because people either seem to run them, or stay stopped mysteriously for long periods of time.

I agree perfectly with that. In NC people never pay attention, even when in a clearly marked and lighted convoy for FEMA we had issues with people attempting to merge through us because they didn't want to miss their exit when they had close to a mile to merge behind us.

 

[Bambooza]

Cali isnt terrible, they just drive fast.

Lol, growing up in California I have to say driving elsewhere is frustrating how slow people go nor do they seem to understand the concept of merging, on ramp, off ramp and staying out of the left lane. Of course there is also times when the freeways become parking lots and its faster to just walk.

Then again one morning in Mendoza, Argentina I was watching the an intersection with stop lights trying to figure out the traffic laws. It seems the lights were decorations and the flow of traffic was dictated by who ever had the biggest kahuna's.

 

[Printimus]

Lol, growing up in California I have to say driving elsewhere is frustrating how slow people go nor do they seem to understand the concept of merging, on ramp, off ramp and staying out of the left lane. Of course there is also times when the freeways become parking lots and its faster to just walk.

RIGHT?! im glad im not the only one.

 

[Ripcord33]

well, no matter where i go people seem to forget that all merging traffic is supposed to yield to traffic already on the highway. I can't count the number of times people almost ended up under my trailer or riding the shoulder for a mile beside me simply because they dont want to slow down for the 3 seconds it would take them to get behind me, then pass like a normal person. 90% of the time, if i dont move over to let you on, its not because im being an asshole, its because i literally can not move over, im not a car, im a 64 foot vehicle that weighs up to, and sometimes over 80k lbs.

Not to mention the number of people that think i can just slow down and stop on a dime, particularly on winter roads or steep downgrades. As a matter of fact, just a few weeks ago i had a car that passed me on my left in on a 4-wide section of interstate, then realized his exit was 1/2 mile away, cuts in front of me in city traffic, cant continue to cross all 3 other lanes so he jams on his brakes less than 50ft in front of me, He was lucky i didnt run him over, I laid on the air horn, he panicked and about ran into another car. I was stuck with traffic on both sides.

This was in the midwest, where he literally could have just driven the extra mile to the next exit, turned back on to the interstate going the opposite way and gotten where he needed to go. But instead he forces me to come to a complete stop in the middle of 70mph traffic just so he can cut across 3 lanes to make his exit.

As far as not being in the left lane, thats everywhere, just like in semi's particularly where the far left is truck restricted, the middle lane is meant to be a passing lane for semi's yet for some reason all these steering wheel holders in 63mph trucks ride the middle lane forcing people who own their own rigs (like me) and can do the speed limit to make a choice between an illegal pass on the right, with the risk of running into a slower vehicle, or taking up the left "No Trucks allowed" lane. Had a state trooper try to write me a ticket for being in the left lane just outside Indy once. I told him, you get these governed trucks to stop riding the middle lane, and ill stop going the speed limit in the left lane and passing them. he ended up just giving me a warning. He was a nice guy, I chatted with him about bull crap laws getting put on truckers for a bit before we both took off.

And the main reason I dont drive cali, is because in a Semi, I'm restricted to 55mph in the whole state, and i have to have that emissions BS on my truck, which i dont. for a lot of reasons. The state of california will eventually kill itself in the transportation industry. Lots of Companies that i have friends working for have already stopped doing business out there due to the over restrictive laws. Fun Fact: the "aero" kits for trailers (side skirts and air dams on the bottom of the trailer" are only required in the state of california. Fun Fact part 2: those kits only improve MPG when traveling over 62mph, and the state speed limit for all trailer towing vehicles is 55MPH. Another fun fact, those kits can add up 3k lbs to the total weight of the trailer, reducing the amount of freight you can haul legally.

TL/DR IMO california is a communist state that is unprofitable for me as an Owner/Operator.
Also, people drive stupid no matter what state you live in.

 

[Metal-Muffin]

You think driving in Florida is bad?

Try driving in Italy!

I almost died multiple occasions in Rome. Those people are nuts.

Guadalajara, and Iraq are by far the worst countries I’ve ever driven in. After living in Arkansas, Florida, Texas, and Louisiana; I’m pretty sure that the South Just hands people drivers licences as long as they can say “Trump” with less than 3 syllables. Germany was by far the best driving experience I’ve had so far.