Truckers are certainly not what we used to be.

[boxcarOkie]

Gawd ...

BCO

[bubbaqgal]

So are you telling us that you don't have ANY blind spots in your car or bus mirrors?  No mirrors are perfect. Are you telling us that no one has ever gotten in your blind spot when you were driving your bus?  Sure, Steve, we believe that one.  Many idiots like to get in one of those spots and don't move and I am willing to bet that you have had people do that to you and I bet you got just as angry about it as you do at a trucker that doesn't see you.  Just because a driver doesn't see you does not mean he didn't look.  We had all kinds of people pull out in front of our truck, cut across lanes in front of us and then get mad because we almost hit them.  From your comments I would bet that you might be one of those people.  Stop following trucks so close, stop getting beside them and staying in the same place and stop complaining about someone being concerned for your safety.  Too bad you can't ride with a trucker for a day and see just how stupid you think those signs are when in the drivers place.  

[gus]

I flash when passed most of the time, usually if the truck is being followed by traffic. I get clearance light thanks then most of the time, especially if another truck or two is following the passer. The double and triple drivers especially appreciate this and I flash for them at all times.

Often there is no response but I presume that the driver is probably not looking at the exact instant I flash, easy to happen. When that happens it does not bother me, the world is not perfect.

When I stopped driving 15 years ago there were many, many sleaze-balls driving, not at all like the old driver gentlemen who were known as "knights of the open road". It got so bad we usually turned off our CBs.

[TedsBUSted]

. . .I don't think the appropriate answer at the Manslaughter by Vehicle trial is "they were in my blind zone, so it isn't my fault that I ran them off the road!" . . .

I don't know.... To me, that basic testimony would seem to have merit as a defense argument.
Maybe at trial it would be cleaned up a bit to something like:
"Is it true that the car was traveling for some time in the truck's blind spot, which blind spot we've previously ascertained to have been clearly -if not boldly- placarded as a blind spot; and thus the car would have essentially been invisible to any driver, despite having intently searched for nearby vehicles?"  "Yes, that's correct."

[Len Silva]

It seems to happen all the time.  I'll be tooling along in the right lane at whatever speed I feel like, and I see someone coming up on me, going at least 10 mph faster than I am.

Then, when they get along side, they just want to hang for while like they're my new best bud.  Hey man, friend me on Facebook or something but get the f away from me.  That sometimes distracts me and I get a little careless about staying in my lane.

[Oonrahnjay]

There are many idiot 4-wheeler drivers out there, and some truckers are inconsiderate or shouldn't be driving such a large vehicle.  And even a careful, courteous driver (of any kind) will make the occasional mistake.  But if I'm sharing the road with a trucker (or a pro bus driver), I consider that he's working hard to earn a living out there and I try to do everything I can to keep out of his way and make his life easier.  Sometimes it's a flash if he needs to pull in, sometimes it's a lane change to let him by -- although I usually am far from the hammer lane since I am firmly convinced that if everyone would stay as far right as practical, we'd all be safer and traffic would move quicker -- sometimes, it's dropping back further to keep my lights out of all those mirrors.  But I try to do what I can.  (What really torques me off is when I'm trying to move over to the left lane to let a trucker merge in and some a$$h*le in a BMW is burning up the left lane running 20 MPH over the speed limit.)  And I can't believe that anyone in his right mind would try to "draft" a truck!

[jjrbus]

Reminds me of a story, about 1955 my parents left NY and headed to NV. My mom liked to tell  the story about out west somewhere they lost their tailights in Nellie, Nellie was a late 40's Ford truck with a canvas and 2x4 camper on the back!

I remember Nellie well, the front and rear bumper were a railroad tie cut in half, it was painted silver and had the weights listed on the side.


 Anyway somewhere in the mountains they lost their tail lights and a trucker pulled behind them and somehow let them know their lights were out, stayed behind them till the next garage.  Probably does not happen anymore.

 
 The good old days.                             JIm

 

[robertglines1]

I drive on constant defensive: Would rather be mistaken than DEAD rite. Let's all get there in one piece. Rite or wrong. See you at the end of the trip   Bob.

[letz4wheel]

There will always be blind spots. The  unit is just too large and variable to fix problems. There are sensors on some trucks telling you when somebody is in a blind spot. There are largish mirrors that minimize blind spots. By the way those mirrors get bumped fairly regular...larger mirrors would likely get ripped off. All in all I think they do a fairly decent job of equiping a truck for the life it leads.
Trucks turn many,many miles a year, Dropping and hooking trailers, bouncing up and down the road. You expect someting electronic to hold up to the constant plugging and unplugging, being beat up when they are dropped on customer yards? Good Luck
 Drivers are on the road several hundred miles a day those same drivers did the same thing yesterday and will probably do the same thing tomorrow. They see the same things day after day. Look for all the common dangers. Guess what? they are human and do miss things. Like it are not they make mistakes. The end result is they are much bigger than you and if you happen to "be in thier way" you will be crushed and most likely dead so it really doesn't matter what comes out at the manslaughter trial. Dead is dead. I cannot imagine that any driver leaves the house and starts to drive and says "I think I want to kill someone today" You might just want to make sure the one that is killed isn't you.

[letz4wheel]

Perfect example. Did this trucker miss a leaky axle seal, low fluid level, did it go bad while he was on his trip? Who knows and really who cares...just thank God you weren't driving next to him railing on about how silly you thought his sign was!


Terre Haute, Indiana (NBC) - A Terre Haute bank was broken into overnight, but police say it was not a robbery.

Two tires from a semi smashed into a window at a Harris Bank branch. The semi was traveling along U.S. 41 when the incident happened around 9:30 p.m. Monday night.

Witnesses say the tires went flying through a Long John Silvers parking lot before hitting the bank. No one was injured, and police think the semi driver didn't know the tires flew off the truck.

It's unclear if the bank will have to close for repairs.

[John316]

4wheel, I knew a young man that was killed by a wheel like that. Split his civic in half, and he never knew what happened. His younger sister was severely injured, and is still relearning everything that she used to know. His other brother that was in the car, wasn't hurt as badly. He still has that memory of his brother slumped over the steering wheel, dead. Yup, scary stuff.

I agree, if I am passing a truck in a 4 wheeler, I do it as quickly as possible (in our bus too, of course). If traffic is heavy, I make sure I won't get trapped beside a truck.

I have noticed that when I flash in the bus, I often get a reply. When I am in a 4 wheeler, rarely do I get a thanks.

I can't stand any kind of vehicle that crowds my safety space. I have gotten to where I will turn my brights on (day or night) until they are clear of my zone. Passing is fine, just don't chop my front off. Btw, that is a nice part about the new bus headlights that we retroed. Nice and bright.

FWIW

John

[pabusnut]

OK to clear up what I am saying--I have a problem with the sign.  I know we all have a blind spot some larger than others.  We all need to pay attention and do our part, whether that is equipping our vehicle to minimize the blind spot, not hanging out in the blind spot, or driving erratically.  I believe the ALARA principle from radiation safety should apply to blind spots.  With ALARA, we try to reduce the risk to As Low As Reasonably Achievable.  I want to reduce my blind spots to the absolute minimum I can reasonably achieve.  Most all dog-nosed school busses have the convex mirrors mounted on the left and right front corners of the hood so they can see students as they exit and go around the front of the bus to the opposit side of the road.  Many trucks I see now are doing the same to help eliminate the blind spots on their trucks.  The trucks I have seen with the "you are in my blind spot" (on the driver side of the sleeper) are not comparably equipped--they only added the sticker.  The sticker probably doesn't help much, because you have to slow down to read it, and then you are in the blind spot longer than you would have been if the sticker weren't there. 

I am normally in the right lane doing the speed limit on cruise control.  The only time I venture into the left lane is to pass a slower vehicle.

My problems have been with trucks that PASS ME, then slow down for traffic (or on a hill where they thought they could pass me(when I continue in the right lane at the same speed.  I can see the "YOU ARE IN MY BLIND SPOT" sticker as they try to push me to the right into the guard rail as they attempt to get back into MY lane.  Did HE forget he was passing me?  In one case I was driving a Suburban towing a trailer!--USED THE HORN AND HE KEPT RIGHT ON COMING--HAD TO NAIL THE BRAKES AND HUG THE GUARD RAIL TO AVOID GETTING HIT!

On a local Interstate, I had a truck tailgate me so close that I know he couldn’t see my car(I was in the slow lane going downhill at the posted speed limit on cruise control).  I accelerated to get out of his way, and when it was safe to do so, I signaled and pulled over on the side well off the road, and let him go by.  When he flashed past, I got the company name and promptly called the State Police.  You know what they said?  Did he hit you?  Can you identify the driver?  “Well if you can’t identify the driver, there is no case”  DUH?

Another case is where I am on the interstate(in the right lane) and a vehicle is passing me.  I am now passing an entrance to the interstate that is at least 3/4 of a mile long, and a tractor trailer immediately enters the highway from the on-ramp less than 500 ft in front of me.  I have to panic brake to 30 mph from 65 to avoid hitting him.  These guys don't even attempt to come up to any kind of speed or analyze the traffic situation.  Remember, If I hit him from behind it is my fault.

When I learned to drive, my mom (yes Dad was not the greatest driver) taught me to always keep track of the vehicles around you when you are driving.  They don’t mysteriously disappear—they are somewhere.  I know it is exhausting for professional drivers, and that is why there are limits on drive/rest cycles.   If you saw a car start to pass you, but you don’t see it now aside of you, and it’s not in front of you, then it might be in your blind spot, and you might want to hold off that lane change for a second. 

Good driving takes serious work! 

Bad Driving- Effortless!

[TedsBUSted]

Good driving takes serious work!  

Bad Driving- Effortless!

Interesting, because I believe that actually it's bad driving that takes the hard work and is so energy-draining and exhausting.

On the other hand, good proactive driving can usually make for  a calm and almost effortless ride.

Hang on PA, this ride's gonna be rough.

Articulated vehicles carry large blind spots; there's no way around that.

As far as a "blind spot" signs being difficult to read, I believe that the idea is for  a reasonable person to become educated and then remain aware of the fact that a certain  vehicle type carries a certain blind spot hazard. The presence of a somewhat standardized sign makes a  nice reminder, even if the text is not always exactly legible. After all, if a "STOP" sign should lose its "S" would a reasonable person then interpret that to be a "TOP" sign?

PA, seriously, I think you need to get a "bigger picture" when you're out motoring. Most of the situations that you are getting so emotional about,  could usually be easily foreseen, avoided or adjusted for, with no great effort and certainly without the stress and anxiety you're causing yourself. For example, about a mile or so before a freeway entrance ramp, you'll notice a sign indicating same, that's the time to start looking and anticipating what you may encounter there. Yes, it's part of your duty as a motorist to anticipate and adjust for the roadway needs of other vehicles. That may occasionally include jumping over a lane to avoid screeching up on the rear of a merging vehicle.

Slow merging - Believe me,  a heavy vehicle driver who is entering a highway at slower speed is not doing so because he's taking in the beautiful scenery, or hoping that you'll slam into his Mansfield bar. By looking a little further ahead, I believe you'll find that highway engineers saw to it that the truck which "immediately enters the highway" and causes you to panic brake could easily have been anticipated. Seriously, I can't remember ever having to panic brake in the way you describe, let alone often enough to mention.  

Down hill run - When you see the approaching truck in your mirror, pop in the left lane for a moment, let him pass -yes, on the right- when he hits his downhill "sweet spot" you easily adjust your own speed to keep some distance behind him.

"My lane" - Do you really believe that the lane you happen to be traveling in is exclusively "your lane" without regard to other usual traffic flow patterns,  and yes, sometimes even unique situations? Get real about that.

Passing - Sometimes a vehicle intends to pass, and then for some reason finds the pass can not be safely or quickly completed. When a pass is aborted, a courteous driver then tries to clear the passing lane as soon as possible. It's childish and selfish, not to mention unsafe, to block the vehicle in the passing lane.

Don't worry PA, besides a  few driving rough spots, I still love you.

Ted

[Lin]

Pa,

I would suggest that even though you are in the right lane doing the speed limit on cruise control, you may be a road hazard.  I question whether using cruise control in a lane the requires a constant alteration of speed due to on and off ramps, and the variation of grades is just a bad idea.  If you want to be on autopilot, best move over a lane, and if everyone is going 5 mph faster than you are, set it 5 mph higher.  Whatever you are doing, it would seem from the guard rail incident that you are inspiring road rage in others.  Maybe it is your right to do so, but I question the wisdom.

[Jeremy]

For what it's worth - Range Rovers have a 'anti blind spot' device that uses radar to warn the driver about vehicles that might not appear in his mirrors. And cameras could be retro-fitted to any vehicle (ie., our buses) to give coverage in all directions at all times. But of course no technology absolves other road users of their own duty to drive with intelligence and consideration.

Jeremy