switchlogic:
A short Trucknet play by meOpens Trucknet…
Me - ‘Holy moly, how has it got to 16 pages since this morning?!’
Opens topic…
Me - ‘Oh, of course, Carryfast’
Closes topic
Don’t forget Luke, we now have the added bonus of Dr ■■■■ and Jinglebells from the brainstrust too, that doctor is full of eveidence to back his “facts” up so it should run for many more…
JakeWS:
Just asking a question here and not accepting drink driving as I know it is completely unacceptable under any circumstances.How would it be deemed if the drunk driver was, other than the actual alcohol in his system, “Innocent”. I am using this term loosely as obviously he is still wrong for being drunk. Say for example he was the lead wagon and had to break for an emergency in front, or even his “Auto breaking system” activated, with the minibus and other wagon just both running in to the back of him, how would this be dealt with?
Dunno. He COULD be innocent of any cause to the accident, if for instance he had had a catastrophic mechanical failure which left him stranded in L1 AND if he had done anything within his power to immediately warn the police and try and warn oncoming traffic, starting with putting his hazards on.
Something tells me that isn’t the case tho - but as usual we are just guessing out loud and no doubt it’ll all ‘come out in the wash’.
Norfolkinclue1:
switchlogic:
A short Trucknet play by meOpens Trucknet…
Me - ‘Holy moly, how has it got to 16 pages since this morning?!’
Opens topic…
Me - ‘Oh, of course, Carryfast’
Closes topic
Don’t forget Luke, we now have the added bonus of Dr ■■■■ and Jinglebells from the brainstrust too, that doctor is full of eveidence to back his “facts” up so it should run for many more…
Ah yes, the expert panel. I’m sure the police will be calling on their expert guidance soon.
All this speculating what happened is so utterly pointless in my opinion
Juddian:
I’ll make a little prediction here, within a short time of the smart motorways all going live and hard shoulder running becoming the norm and a good few accidents of a similar nature have happened involving stationary vehicles especially in unlit sections, i reckon the night trunkers in unlit sections and the rest of us when vision is poor such as in fog, we’ll be making our own rules up and resorting to three lane running and not using the hard shoulder at all, and sod their smart sticking plaster for a road network unable to service the population.
Yet ironically if this were a smart motorway it almost certainly wouldn’t have happened. They work in Holland and many other countries so no reason why they shouldn’t work here. I think they do and will always use all available lanes. Personally I see it as a choice between this or stuffing up even more of our countryside with me roads that just increase congestion.
Luke
I will be honest I don’t completely understand smart motorways .
So late on Sunday night in the dark I am driving southbound M1 near Luton. None of the overhead gantries are lit and the signs near the end of the onslips indicate to me that the hard shoulder is not available for live line running .
So what I don’t understand is whether this is the signs set up for an obstruction on the hard shoulder or if someone is on the hard shoulder do the signs kick into life.
Hope that makes sebse
switchlogic:
Juddian:
I’ll make a little prediction here, within a short time of the smart motorways all going live and hard shoulder running becoming the norm and a good few accidents of a similar nature have happened involving stationary vehicles especially in unlit sections, i reckon the night trunkers in unlit sections and the rest of us when vision is poor such as in fog, we’ll be making our own rules up and resorting to three lane running and not using the hard shoulder at all, and sod their smart sticking plaster for a road network unable to service the population.Yet ironically if this were a smart motorway it almost certainly wouldn’t have happened. They work in Holland and many other countries so no reason why they shouldn’t work here. I think they do and will always use all available lanes. Personally I see it as a choice between this or stuffing up even more of our countryside with me roads that just increase congestion.
At M1 junction 14 not smart motorway.
I have neither the patience nor the willpower to read all 17 pages so I’ll post this and if it’s been said before, apologies.
I read this morning that the minibus tried to move out to pass the stationary wagon but hit the lasso g FedEx lorry which resulted in all three becoming entangled.
If that is the case then surely the minibus driver left it too late to move or should have slowed down and let the FedEx past before changing lanes. I appreciate great care is needed by the police before apportioning blame to the one who died but if what I read is true then it’s a mystery why the FedEx driver got charged with dangerous driving yet the minibus driver appears to be portrayed as blameless.
Having said that, that was the only article I’ve read about the incident so it may be completely wrong or inaccurate. I expect to be corrected if so.
paul_r:
LukeI will be honest I don’t completely understand smart motorways .
So late on Sunday night in the dark I am driving southbound M1 near Luton. None of the overhead gantries are lit and the signs near the end of the onslips indicate to me that the hard shoulder is not available for live line running .
So what I don’t understand is whether this is the signs set up for an obstruction on the hard shoulder or if someone is on the hard shoulder do the signs kick into life.
Hope that makes sebse
As far as I understand it, there are two types of smart motorway:
Type 1 - live lanes and a HS that can be used as a relief lane. These are the ones where the HS has a solid line.
Under normal traffic volumes, the HS will be closed like a normal HS, as that’s the safest option. Under heavy traffic volume, the HS will be opened into a live lane via the overhead gantries. This type is supposed to be for roads that have big peaks in traffic, but aren’t overloaded the rest of the time.
Type 2 - All live lanes. Ones where there is no solid line for the HS.
These have no dedicated HS and so the gantries solely control whether a lane gets closed in case of a breakdown etc. This type is supposed to be for roads that have very high traffic most of the time.
The-Snowman:
I have neither the patience nor the willpower to read all 17 pages so I’ll post this and if it’s been said before, apologies.
I read this morning that the minibus tried to move out to pass the stationary wagon but hit the lasso g FedEx lorry which resulted in all three becoming entangled.
If that is the case then surely the minibus driver left it too late to move or should have slowed down and let the FedEx past before changing lanes. I appreciate great care is needed by the police before apportioning blame to the one who died but if what I read is true then it’s a mystery why the FedEx driver got charged with dangerous driving yet the minibus driver appears to be portrayed as blameless.
Having said that, that was the only article I’ve read about the incident so it may be completely wrong or inaccurate. I expect to be corrected if so.
TBH Snowman I suspect that the police investigation thus far has found lots of evidence which will be examined by a coroner and criminal trial jury. That the minibus driver was among the fatalities means he couldn’t be charged and, given the raw emotions and numbers involved, the passage of time may well make the verdicts easier for the relatives to accept if the now dead minbus driver is found to have contributed to this sad incident.
Just to clarify…
Is it assumed (or confirmed) that the AIM truck was parked in lane 1 for 12 minutes even though there was a hard shoulder there■■?
Blue Day:
Just to clarify…Is it assumed (or confirmed) that the AIM truck was parked in lane 1 for 12 minutes even though there was a hard shoulder ithere■■?
Any number of reasons, the vehicle could have been stranded in lane 1,
We see it every day a vehicle stranded in a lane that couldn’t make the shoulder.
biggriffin:
Blue Day:
Just to clarify…Is it assumed (or confirmed) that the AIM truck was parked in lane 1 for 12 minutes even though there was a hard shoulder ithere■■?
Any number of reasons, the vehicle could have been stranded in lane 1,
We see it every day a vehicle stranded in a lane that couldn’t make the shoulder.
That’s not what he asked, he’s asking if it’s actually confirmed or just speculation that the truck was there for 12 minutes or not. We all know it’s a possible scenario but is it actually fact that this is what has happened in this case.
Reef:
biggriffin:
Blue Day:
Just to clarify…Is it assumed (or confirmed) that the AIM truck was parked in lane 1 for 12 minutes even though there was a hard shoulder ithere■■?
Any number of reasons, the vehicle could have been stranded in lane 1,
We see it every day a vehicle stranded in a lane that couldn’t make the shoulder.That’s not what he asked, he’s asking if it’s actually confirmed or just speculation that the truck was there for 12 minutes or not. We all know it’s a possible scenario but is it actually fact that this is what has happened in this case.
Thanks Reef - yes I was wondering, as regards the AIM truck, where it was actually parked??
Blue Day:
Reef:
biggriffin:
Blue Day:
Just to clarify…Is it assumed (or confirmed) that the AIM truck was parked in lane 1 for 12 minutes even though there was a hard shoulder ithere■■?
Any number of reasons, the vehicle could have been stranded in lane 1,
We see it every day a vehicle stranded in a lane that couldn’t make the shoulder.That’s not what he asked, he’s asking if it’s actually confirmed or just speculation that the truck was there for 12 minutes or not. We all know it’s a possible scenario but is it actually fact that this is what has happened in this case.
Thanks Reef - yes I was wondering, as regards the AIM truck, where it was actually parked??
Prosecutor Zainab Mohamed said: "This is an incident that occurred on the 26th of August 2017.
“There is a collision on the M1 motorway, and three vehicles are involved.”
"It is the case that the defendant’s vehicle is stationary in lane one of the motorway, for approximately 12 minutes.
"The Ford Transit minibus is driving in the same lane, and is attempting to get into the other lane to drive around the defendant’s vehicle which had stopped.
"There is then a collision with the third vehicle. I think everyone is aware of the consequences of that collision.”
Highway code - Overtaking on a motorway section 267:
well i’ve read all the pages now , One thing it has taught me is slow down , especially if you see something slow or stopped ahead and leave a bigger gap between myself and the vehicle in front , Yes i know there are a lot of perfect drivers on here who already do that , but there are probably some honest ones too amongst us that do get too close to the vehicle in front as we wait for a safe gap in the middle lane to overtake,
Another thing , I think the general public / car drivers need educating , maybe with adverts on TV , about the dangers of driving between 50 to 54 mph on the motorway , They might think they are being careful , or safer by doing that , but surely they would be much safer driving between 60 and 70 mph , Maybe a minimum speed limit of 60mph for vans and cars would help
supermatt:
Don’t post here much but I passed the scene around 10 minutes before it happened. Just want to let you guys know what i saw leading up to the accident.Im not going to suggest blame, thats for the Police
The AIM logistics HGV was parked in lane 1 of the M1 S/B with parking brake on NO HAZARDS, NO BRAKE LIGHTS just before the bridge but after the slip road.The first I saw of him stationary in the wrong lane was when I exited on the slip road at J14, I couldn’t believe what I saw, It defied all logic. I didn’t see him until the last moment but luckily was on the slip road.
Purely my opinion, but now with info the Police have released I can only assume he decided to take a break on the hard shoulder, but was so pis sed didn’t realise he was in lane 1.
The way he was parked in a live lane was very disorientating because of the slip road as in he looked like he was on H/S.
RIP to all on minibus and sympathy to fedex driver as what I saw it could have easily been anyone of us who hit that bus.
This was posted early on Sun morning . I know some have said they have not read through all topic , but surely what is highlighted must have played some significance in this accident .
villa:
well i’ve read all the pages now , One thing it has taught me is slow down , especially if you see something slow or stopped ahead and leave a bigger gap between myself and the vehicle in front , Yes i know there are a lot of perfect drivers on here who already do that , but there are probably some honest ones too amongst us that do get too close to the vehicle in front as we wait for a safe gap in the middle lane to overtake,
In the case of something stationary in a live lane ahead,the odds are very likely that you’ll need to stop with no time to make a safe lane change.
While the issue of maintaining a decent seperation distance is basic survival not perfect driving.
Sand Fisher:
Prosecutor Zainab Mohamed said: "This is an incident that occurred on the 26th of August 2017.“There is a collision on the M1 motorway, and three vehicles are involved.”
"It is the case that the defendant’s vehicle is stationary in lane one of the motorway, for approximately 12 minutes.
"The Ford Transit minibus is driving in the same lane, and is attempting to get into the other lane to drive around the defendant’s vehicle which had stopped.
"There is then a collision with the third vehicle. I think everyone is aware of the consequences of that collision.”Highway code - Overtaking on a motorway section 267:
- check your mirrors
- take time to judge the speeds correctly
- make sure that the lane you will be joining is sufficiently clear ahead and behind
- take a quick sideways glance into the blind spot area to verify the position of a vehicle that may have disappeared from your view in the mirror
- remember that traffic may be coming up behind you very quickly. Check all your mirrors carefully. Look out for motorcyclists. When it is safe to do so, signal in plenty of time, then move out.
- ensure you do not cut in on the vehicle you have overtaken
- be especially careful at night and in poor visibility when it is harder to judge speed and distance.
It would be in the interests of justice and/or road safety for the prosecutors to make their case clear now as to exactly why the Fed Ex driver has been implicated in all this.
Having heard a few more lines of information I actually feel for this Aim driver.
Yes he was over the limit which is a No…No
But it’s turns out he lost his transport business then got divorced and up until last month he had been living in his car And Now this.
I don’t think he wanted to kill anybody but it looks like his new friend to forget the bad times he has had ie drink has created a disaster!!
No excuse but as a Driver like us all he has made a big problem for others and himself
