Un-safe trucker

[DC_MPA]

Absolutely put it on youtube and send a link of the video to the company leadership (or lack thereof) on a unanimous email venting your rage. I was in the trucking business in logistics right after I finished my undergraduate degree. After 2.5 years, I vowed to never return. It is a shady business even for the giant firms like I worked for that had 15,000 trucks. They say it is all about safety, safety, safety but on the office side it is all about manipulating the opportunities to maximize the asset while still conveying a message of safety. They would force us to push drives to 70 hour weeks, fog the log books, and always overweigh a trucks legal capacity to ensure they were maximizing the ROI of the truck while still being able to pass scales. For instance, we would have trucks go in on empty tanks, get loaded, weigh out and they were max capacity, then have the truck go in and fuel up making it way over weight because by the time the driver hit the scale on his/her route they would be underweight again. Way too unethical of an environment for me. Those drivers are pushing 70 hours behind the wheel each week if they are getting their 500 miles a day run. Don't get me started on the stories I would hear from drivers who came into the office. That alone has still made me nervous being around a truck on the highway.

Post it on youtube, send it to the company on a unanimous email. It will go viral if we get our hands on it

 

[OkieStubble]

2 lane country highway, truck was empty, no way to pull over... The FIRST jake braking, I thought it was maybe an incident where he wasn't paying attention, but when he repeated the incident about 10 times during the 5 minutes he was tailing me, repeatedly pulling back, accelerating at full throttle, then lifting throttle and coasting right up to my bumper, it was intimidation, it was not an accident. Takes one finger swipe turn on a video camera, and I wasn't watching what I was recording, I was watching the road. Someone changing a radio station would have been more distracted than I was holding a phone pointing backwards. No more distracted than resting my left arm out the window while driving.

Was it a two lane going in both directions or just one lane going in both directions? If it was a two lane, you should of pulled over into the slower right lane and let the truck pass you. If it was only a one lane and you couldn't pull over, then the truck was tailgaiting if he wasn't allowing at least a vehicle length between you and him. As someone who deals with these type of issues on a daily basis, I would suggest only getting the trucks information and reporting it to your Department of Public Safety.

They keep records of complaints on drivers and truck companys who are not driving safely. As your individual complaint may not bring immediate reprecussions for the driver, if he continues in the practice and recieves multiple complaints, An official notification to his company by DPS will garner much more attention than if you called the company yourself.

 

[OkieStubble]

Ask any law enforcement officer or driving safety instructor and they will tell you the dumbest thing you can do is speed up.
I'm frankly stunned that a professional driver would even consider that an option.

If you are unable to get to the right to let them pass, the correct and recommended answer is to slow down even more, but very gradually.

This opens the gap between you and any traffic in front of you, and both encourages and makes it easier for the tailgater to pass you, and that is what you want.

This is the only correct answer.

 

[OkieStubble]

With what attitude is that, exactly? Wanting the driver to get out of harm's way? Sorry, I do not follow.

The question you should be asking yourself is, why is the driver in 'harms way' in the first place? There isn't supposed to be a 'harms way' period. Is it because he is going just a couple of miles under the speed limit? I don't think so. Or is it because a 50,000 pound truck is on his bumper because the trucker chooses to not keep the appropriate distance of a safe following speed? As a police officer I think this is probably the answer.

 

[DaveNJ74]

You should come to NJ and see how reckless people drive here. I saw a girl driving with both hands texting with her phone, no hands on the wheel. Thats her version of hands free I guess. I think it's safer to drive in Manhattan with the yellow bullets ( taxi cabs ).

 

[_JP_]

Truck drivers with this attitude are exactly what's wrong with truck drivers.

You don't "own" the road, and nobody should be expected to do anything they can to get out of the way. *YOU* are expected to drive in safe, professional manner. In this incident, the truck driver was 100% at fault.

Listening to the CB over many years on the roads, I have heard some truckers discuss how they feel they have more rights to the highway because of the taxes they have to pay. While that is not true, the attitude is out there. Unlike shipping on railroads where they own or lease the track, truckers are using public roadways for their enterprise, and some seem to lose sight of that.

 

[bkfist]

Was it a two lane going in both directions or just one lane going in both directions? If it was a two lane, you should of pulled over into the slower right lane and let the truck pass you. If it was only a one lane and you couldn't pull over, then the truck was tailgaiting if he wasn't allowing at least a vehicle length between you and him.

2 lane as in 1 lane going north, 1 lane going south, gravel shoulders that are normally somewhat soft, compounded by about 4 inches of rain earlier that day. If I were in the left lane of a 4-lane highway and didn't pull over to the right and/or refused to speed up to complete a pass so I could pull over, I'd have expected, and deserved, getting pushed off the road... LOL

 

[DC_MPA]

I've seen people on Oklahoma roads set their cruise control, put their knee on the wheel and have a thick book resting on the steering wheel reading away.

 

[bkfist]

Remember, the first 4 minutes were not recorded and the trucker was much closer at times than during the 2 minutes that did get recorded. Turn down your volume, as once the camera goes out the window, all you get is wind noise.

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[jd_1138]

It's hard to describe traffic situations on a forum. That's why in a courtroom, they have the board where you can draw in roads and show the Judge or jury what you are talking about.

Recently I was almost hit. I was driving through an intersection, and a moron didn't stop at the stop sign (I was on the main road with no stop or yield signs) and he came out onto the road and didn't stop at the meridian in the middle. He just came straight onto the road for his left turn, and he didn't go to the left lane (slow) like he should have. He headed straight for the right lane, and I had to panic stop and change lanes quickly. I leaned on the horn and was going to follow him and honk a while to let him know what he did, but he quickly sped away and was doing like 80 in a 55. People are nuts. He made many mistakes -- running the stop sign, not stopping at the meridian to see if cars were coming, not going into the left lane, coming into my lane, speeding, etc.. That's when bad accidents occur when people make mistake after mistake. It was a young kid in a ratty Jeep Cherokee that was lifted about 5 inches. Stay away from young dudes in 4x4's; some of have an overabundance of testerone and stupidity.

 

[oc_in_fw]

Listening to the CB over many years on the roads, I have heard some truckers discuss how they feel they have more rights to the highway because of the taxes they have to pay. While that is not true, the attitude is out there. Unlike shipping on railroads where they own or lease the track, truckers are using public roadways for their enterprise, and some seem to lose sight of that.

And the reason they pay more taxes is that they do more damage to the road.

 

[cb91710]

(2 lane highway, I was travelling about 51 - 53 MPH, cruise set)

And most factory speedometers read 3% to 10% fast, so you were actually doing anywhere from 45 to 50.

Speed up or allow others to pass and stop obstructing traffic. Be a considerate driver.
It's the law that if 5 people are piled up behind you that you must pull over and allow them to pass... and if the first one behind you is a truck, you don't know how many are behind him.

Allowing that truck to pass COULD have saved someone's life. Had there been 3 people piled up behind him, someone back there could have assumed that the truck was the hold-up, and attempted to pass.
Getting halfway through the pass, with oncoming traffic, they see you and realize that they have another 40ft to cover before completing the pass. They now have nowhere to go.
That doesn't mean that the person attempting to pass would not be LEGALLY at fault for making an unsafe pass... he would be and you would continue smugly down the road feeling fully justified that there's one less jerk on the road.... but you created the situation that lead to the accident.

I'm not making excuses for the trucker... what he did was unsafe, but he's not paid by the hour, he's paid by the mile. He's not out for a leisurely afternoon drive... he's doing his job and attempting to deliver his load. His route is planned and dictated by his company, and they base these demands on the posted speed limit. By slowing him down, over the course of 50 miles, you could put him 5 minutes behind schedule, which could mean missing a delivery or pickup.


There are a lot of drivers out there that are a-holes. It goes both ways. Don't be the a-hole driver that says "I'm going fast enough and this jerk behind me is not going to push me faster"


Sorry man... the truck driver was rude and inconsiderate, but so were you.

 

[cb91710]

And the reason they pay more taxes is that they do more damage to the road.

And the reason that we have the interstate highway system is to move the military and commerce.
Without OTR trucking, we would still be rolling 2-lane US highways.

 

[TonyH]

And most factory speedometers read 3% to 10% fast, so you were actually doing anywhere from 45 to 50.

Maybe my Google-fu is weak, but I can't find evidence to support that statement anywhere.

 

[OkieStubble]

This thread delivers.

 

[cb91710]

Maybe my Google-fu is weak, but I can't find evidence to support that statement anywhere.

Quite common.
Generally goes unnoticed because a fast speedometer isn't going to get you a ticket. Instead, people think they're speeding when they aren't.
Unless you have a GPS and compare speeds, it's not enough of an error to really see... but it's there. My '08 Tacoma is 3mph fast at 60, and there's a lot of others on various forums that indicate the same.

Nearly all Japanese motorcycles with digital speedometers (digital sensors, not digital displays) are about 10% fast. That's common knowledge among anyone who has ever ridden with a Harley owner.

Not sure why you're not seeing it on Google, but it's something that's been an issue ever since they went away from cable-driven units (and they were even worse, but not predictably off in one direction or another).
The root is European laws have pretty harsh penalties of a speedometer reads slow. It appears that the manufacturers calibrate high to compensate for commonly installed oversized tires.

BTW: The odometer error is typically about half of the speedometer error. Honda got spanked pretty hard in civil court a few years ago over, IIRC, a 5% error, and ended up having to extend the warranties of those involved in the class action lawsuit.

 

[bkfist]

Maybe my Google-fu is weak, but I can't find evidence to support that statement anywhere.

Mine either... I *am* fairly confident in the speed returned by the GPS on my phone, which says my vehicle is actually doing spot-on with what the speedometer says... Also considering that we often have "your speed is" mobile radar signs (albeit usually in a 45 or 35 mph zone) and my speedometer is also spot-on with those signs (sometimes it's showing 1mph slower than what the radar is - but since those signs are not used for ticketing purposes, I don't know if they are calibrated often).

Would also be interesting if cb91710 could locate anywhere in the Iowa code books any reference to 5 vehicles in Iowa code, does not exist.

 

[cb91710]

Would also be interesting if cb91710 could locate anywhere in the Iowa code books any reference to 5 vehicles in Iowa code, does not exist.

It is in California...

But whether it's the law or not, it's simply common courtesy.
None of us "own" the road. If someone wants to drive faster than you in an unsafe manner, that's their business. If they get a ticket or into an accident because of it, that's their business.

You don't know why they are driving the way they are. Maybe they are just a jerk and HAVE to be ahead of everyone on the road. Maybe they are on their way to see a loved one in the hospital and they just got a call that it won't be much longer.

Aren't we supposed to be gentlemen here?
Why does common courtesy go out the window when we strap ourselves into a steel cage?

 

[TonyH]

It's not worth arguing over, but it is an undocumented "fact" that somehow Google can't produce a single instance of. I'll stick with my speedometer to keep me from getting ticketed, rather than an unsourced opinion.

Again, 3-5 miles under the speed limit is well within the legal range of safe speed. Even 10 miles under is legal. Tailgating and aggressive driving is not. There's a reason why 99% of cases involving rear end accidents go in favor of the person in front. It's the trucker's obligation to keep a safe distance from the rear of the car in front, not the car's job to speed up to whatever unknown speed before the truck is satisfied.

"But officer, he was right on my butt and I was trying to be safe". I'm betting that won't pan out.

 

[Haggises]

Why does common courtesy go out the window when we strap ourselves into a steel cage?

like aggressively tailgating the guy in front of you? You seem yo be missing that bit...a lot.

The only thing the OP did wrong was get his phone camera out. The truck driver (in the scenario as described) is completely in the wrong.