Slowing down is important. It mitigates a possible crash.

The aerodynamics of a boxy trailer do not lend themselves to downward forces sufficient to hld the trailer down. They are built with the freight (up to 46,000 lbs) to provide the downward force.

Areas prone to high winds, such as Laramie, WY along I-80 have light trailer bans in windy winter conditions due to the dangers.

So drivers still do not have options to compensate for hazardous wind conditions - in WY or on the Verrazano-Narrows Bridge in NYC.

Nope. The only option is to play the safety card and refuse to drive in high wind.

Ya oughta put something heavy in there.

Hi Pam. I don't see how you do it with the wind. I had problems driving a van outside of Barstow, can't imagine a big rig.

Slab-sided GrandCherokeeOne gets a bit o' buffeting, too. More than I would have thought. I mean, from outta nowhere, it'll take off across the road on ya.

I prolly couldn't even in a big rig.

Heh, free association, "big rig":

Wheeeeee!

Driving a VW bus isn't often exciting, but it can be very exciting on a windy day.

They are light and voluminous.

aside: Did you know the first generation split windshield van/bus had a lower coefficient of drag than the beetle?
Of course side wind was another matter. ;)

Increasing the distance between the high pressure bow and the turbulent stern helps reduce the overall drag coefficient.

Advantage: microbus

According to the Department of Labor’s Bureau of Labor Statistics, 786 truck drivers were killed on the job in 2016.

That’s 78 percent of the 1,012 motor vehicle operator fatalities reported for the year.

Across all occupations in the U.S., there were 5,190 fatalities reported, an increase from 4,846 in 2015.

Construction had 970 fatalities

link


Since Bruce's numbers come from the Department of Labor, I think the 1,012 motor vehicle operator fatalities are professional drivers. Truck drivers are going to be the lion's share of paid drivers. But you also have bus, taxi, limo, and probably others.

That's what I got out of it, too. I knew the overall number of totaled drivers had to be more than that.

But, yeah, pro drivers, Ima thinkin'.

I'm hoping he doesn't see this every day. :eek:

http://cellar.org/2017/heavy load.gif

:shock:

Almost looks like a suicide...

Like a giant Pez dispenser.

That's helpful..

Wrong tractor for that shit...

A headache rack would have prevented that.

So, too, would a properly secured load.

An item on the website of Mix 96 a local commercial local radio station caught my eye this morning.

I'd probably have gasped and moved on to the next bit of news but for the fact I know the stretch of road reasonably well and would have been hard pressed to believe the report if there'd been no video.

Bentley ploughs into pensioner's car at 85mph in Amersham



From the Daily Mail...

One can only speculate about the reasons for Mr Plumb departing the scene with such haste so I'll let you draw your own conclusions.

There's no mention of when the collision took place but if the dashcam time stamp is correct it happened nearly four years ago only coming to court last October. Yet another unexplained oddity.

Lastly, that Bentley will set you back £160,000 which is about $221,500.

I expect that the driver's actions, assuming he was the owner, will have invalidated his insurance cover, if he had any, so that will have made his eyes water.

BTW, the speed limit is 30mph at the crash site.

You can see the video here.

Thanks, Bruce. I wonder why it has been withdrawn.

It was embedded in the Mix 96 report so gone from there as well.

These things happen. :(

ETA. It's found a new home here, but for how long?

What the hell are those things for anyway, trying to slow traffic?
At least they could create revenue with photo-radar boxes instead.

Otherwise known as 'traffic calming'. I recall that they appeared at the same time the bypass was opened which is the usual arrangement.

They were installed as a deterrent measure on the basis that when the bulk of through traffic is using the bypass, there is always somebody willing to cheat and drive through the town in the expectation of the road being more or less clear and would probably do so at excessive speed.



To the trivia now...

At the other end of the High Street is the Crown Hotel which is where scenes in Four Weddings and a Funeral were filmed and the Market Hall on the other side of the road has been used as a location in Midsomer Murders.

Street View

On second thoughts, delete 'trivia' and insert 'added value'. :)

Hopefully doesn't see this often. :greenface

Trailers, never have too many trailers.

Oh, and this is what sleepers use to look like...

No.

The traffic cone storage makes it look especially appealing.

> 911. What's your emergency?

> I was driving down the highway when suddenly an air conditioner came through my windshield.

In a large truck stop that A/C plugs in so the truck doesn't have to idle to keep the sleeping driver cool.

That's fine and dandy, as long as he takes the 5 minutes to set it up at each stop and takes it back down again before driving away.

Yikes! I'm not sure I pass there.

Well, he did his pass at 8 mph, so, reaction time was not an issue. Truck driver needs a a sea anchor..

He's tacking into the wind like a good sailor.

Truck carrying short logs hits a truck carrying long logs.
Driver in serious but stable condition.

Here's a long shot from a news chopper.

Apparently he thought he was in an Uber truck.

Off with his/her head!!

Wow. That goes beyond bad judgement. There is something wrong with that person's brain. Or they are driving for the first time ever and have never been in a car as a passenger. They don't get it.

Here's something Pam doesn't see every day. Guy on the bridge threatening to jump. State Police directed cars off the freeway and directed 13 trucks to park under the bridge until they talked the guy down 4 hours later.

Was recently drinking coffee with some truck drivers. Their biggest complaint about the NE corridor - no parking

One had a problem. His ten hours was up while stuck waiting for the scales. And no nearby parking available. In hindsight, yes. Truck traffic has easily doubled. And yet I see few to no new parking areas. I have seen truck parking areas that were closed - all full up.

I heard about that incident. I wonder how they explained that one to their respective dispatchers. The e-log has no mercy.

Wouldn't the e-log show them as stopped? Just need a note from Mom Mr Policeman.

When free parking is made available, don't you take advantage of it?

Wonder how it went in the log?

Down time? Or driving time?

You're not driving, but you're on the road.

Technically, the time would be logged on Line 4, On Duty Not Driving.

Any interaction with police, DOT or emergency services must be logged that way. And the fourteen hour clock keeps running nonstop unless you log a minimum of eight hours in the sleeper berth.

This will likely qualify under the Adverse Driving Conditions rule, which allows for up to two hours additional driving time due to unforeseen events which could not be reasonably be predicted at the start of the day.

The split break rules are not well understood and caused many violations in the paper log days. Elogs have eliminated this.

Learn about split breaks here, if you are interested.

Bet Pam don't see this every day:

Attachment 64038

PAW PAW, Mich. — Ben Carpenter got the ride of a lifetime when his electric wheelchair became lodged in the grille of a semitrailer and was accidentally pushed down a highway for several miles at about 50 mph.

I remember that, it was like 10 years ago wasn't it?

Well, it was in that day's headlines, but, you are correct.

Attachment 64069

I remembered it, too, but, thought it had happened again.

My apologies.

Apologies for what? Still an interesting story. :confused:

Kinda like me, now.

I turned 50:thepain: the other day.

Old, but, still interesting.:crone:

Welcome to the Golden Years. :thumb2:

You still will never be a Golden Girl.

I knew Betty White. Sir, you will never be a Betty White.

God I hope I don't live that long.

What? You don't want to do Saturday Night Live? Assuming it lives that long.