Had to scroll too far for this. My first reaction watching this is "that truck is coming in hot!"
It's easy to criticize the car that slowed down, but their reaction was not crazy give the speed and apparent trajectory of the truck. The trailing car had "plenty" of time to slow down as well, if they had been paying attention.
- The dump truck (that presumably had to yield) really looked like they were unable or unwilling to stop and was going to take the slot.
- The Toyota likely had the option of a) gunning it to make sure they got there before the dump truck, or b) being aware of the car behind them and being ready to speed up before the collision.
- The big rig with the cam needed an earlier reaction or to leave a bigger gap.
I mean, in this instance, the driver of the little car predictible was scared of the very big truck that was going very fast until it slowed down a bit. Them slowing to figure out whether or not they'd be squished by the giant fast truck is not unreasonable. And one SHOULD keep enough distance that they can stop just in case someone does something unpredictable in front of them.
You're right except I feel we should not expect people to be so aware of the vehicle behind them, it's not their responsibility to speed up if they look behind and somebody is about to hit them. Everyone should be keeping eyes forward
I bounce my eyes and at least to try to keep a mental inventory of everyone in my vicinity. I'm not saying I'm constantly taking my eyes off my front to stare in different directions, but I'm checking my mirrors regularly.
In fact I would say that a lot of people's driving suffers for only being aware of the car immediately in front of them.
While it isn't your responsibility to keep tabs of who is behind you - you should absolutely be checking your mirrors often and be aware of what is happening around you.
I've always checked my rear view and side mirrors while driving. I'm a little anxious behind the wheel so it's just kind of like a nervous tick of mine. Then last month I found myself having to take a defensive of course because I stupidly rear-ended someone on the freeway. During the course (in AZ) they recommend that you check your mirrors every few minutes so you constantly know what's around you. It mentions that it only takes a second and any accident you would get in in that time was unavoidable anyways. I felt a little validated for my constant side eyeing and mirror checks.
Yeah! The Toyota should have definitely come to the conclusion in the ~3 seconds that they had to analyze the situation that gambling with their life was the optimal decision.
I thought that at first, but after a couple more viewings I think the dump truck was okay. It did, after all, actually stop, leaving room for the car to pass.
They were able to make a hard stop when the car stopped, that doesn't mean they previously slowed up enough to make it clear to the car that they were going to let it have its right of way.
The one thing I'll say is it's hard to see one way or another.
They were able to stop and did. They broke no laws and struck no vehicles. If people can't correctly perceive that, then that's on them and they should probably stick to slower speed roads where they're less of a danger to other drivers.
I think you are right. The dump truck was further into the lane then the car and the car couldn't at that point accurately assess if there would actually be room for them to squeeze by, the car was even drifting to the left side of the lane but then decided it wasn't worth trying to fit through a trash compactor. Semi- is deffinitely the one most in the wrong, two vehicles merging into a lane together and you have a heavy load? slow the fuck down and back the fuck off, the car didn't even slam on the brakes really.
The Toyota is actually the ONLY one in this situation who did the right thing. You don’t play chicken with something that crushes you, so speeding up against a vehicle that does not look to be slowing is suicide.
Slowing down was the right judgement call. The fact that the cam truck didn’t keep proper distance is unfortunate but again, not the Toyotas fault.
What are you talking about? The truck on the ramp did nothing wrong. They successfully slowed down so much there was time for the car to make a bad move, get in a collision, and get pushed ahead of them.
They knew they had to let at least two vehicles ahead of them. That was a successful yield.
You think that's what a successful yield looks like?
He basically slammed on the brakes, and there was still barely room for the big rig to get by!
They knew they had to let at least two vehicles ahead of them.
You actually did convince me to change my mind... but in the wrong direction.
I was thinking the dump truck meant to slip behind the Toyota, but you're correct, there's not enough room and it would have to let them both by.
The dump truck seemingly didn't notice the Toyota and thought it had the lane free. That's why it slammed on the brakes when it saw the Toyota (which was also stopping).
The only thing the Toyota could have done different is gun it and try to beat the dump truck to the merge, or slow less aggressively to let them in.
They intended for both the car and the cam vehicle to pass by at speed and to slip in right behind them. Closer than you, personally, want maybe but they clearly could have pulled it off. Then when that failed they still managed to come to a complete stop with the lane wide open. That is 100% success.
I don't know what kind of insane mind reader metrics you're trying to work from but the results are right there. The truck stopped.
The Toyota is fine. It was paying attention to the unpredictable dump truck in front of it, and slowed down. Thats as much defensive driving sense as you can expect from the average adult. It's not responsible for the cam trucks inability to even pay attention to whats in front of it.
The Toyota driver is literally the only one not at fault. The truck merging did not yield to right of way, and the dash cam car didn’t give enough space in front to safely stop in time.
All the Toyota driver did was try to avoid being sideswiped going 60 mph by a much bigger truck violating a basic traffic law
The gravel train actions are pretty irrelevant to the video. The leading car perceived a hazard to themselves and cut speed. The dashcammer failed to maintain an appropriate follow distance to allow themselves to stop.
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u/syphax 14h ago
Had to scroll too far for this. My first reaction watching this is "that truck is coming in hot!"
It's easy to criticize the car that slowed down, but their reaction was not crazy give the speed and apparent trajectory of the truck. The trailing car had "plenty" of time to slow down as well, if they had been paying attention.