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Old 08-09-2017, 06:17 AM   #1
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Our narrow escape

Sometimes things happen and you don't know why they do. I don't know what prompted me to change lanes on a whim, but I'm glad and grateful I did.
Last week we were heading to Dublin Irish Fest in Dublin, OH, traveling east on US 30 through Indiana. We were in the right lane, trying to stay out of the way of the crazy truckers who seemed hell bent on getting to their destinations regardless of laws or common sense.
US 30 in Indiana has long stretches interspersed with infrequent stoplights. We were approaching one such light when for no apparent reason I decided to change lanes. I pulled into the left lane just as the light went yellow. I was able to stop for the light.
There were three semis behind us. The first one could not stop and went through on the yellow at 70mph. The second blew through the red at 70 mph, and the third blew through the red at 70 mph, A FULL 7 SECONDS AFTER THE LIGHT TURNED RED.
Now, count down 7 seconds. It's an eternity. I thank God or whomever there was no one coming through this intersection at that time, because there would have been little left to rescue.
Had we been in the right lane, we surely would have been rear ended, driving the toad into the coach. It would not have ended well.
I really question the competency of the people driving these big trucks nowadays.
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Old 08-09-2017, 06:30 AM   #2
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I told my wife if i ever need a brain transplant i want a trucker's brain its never been used
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Old 08-09-2017, 06:45 AM   #3
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Please don't take this the wrong way, but maybe by moving to the left your rig was blocking the view of the traffic signal head from the truckers view? I know there are times when a truck is in the left lane I can't see the traffic signal at all and don't have a clue what color it is. Now, I'm not one to say "OH well" and blow right through like your trucker friends did, but I will slow way down and stop if need be until I can be sure the signal is truly green. But then again, it could be the truckers were trying to prove "my rig is faster than yours" and they didn't want to be slowed down by something as silly as a red traffic signal!

In general I find truckers to be true respectful courteous professionals, but I always remember the jerks that seem hell bent on ruining that respectful courteous professional title.

Glad this worked out for you, and as always "trust your instincts". Sounds like you did and it may have saved your bacon.
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Old 08-09-2017, 06:53 AM   #4
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Please don't take this the wrong way, but maybe by moving to the left your rig was blocking the view of the traffic signal head from the truckers view?
I would think it might have worked the opposite way.
While the RV was in the right lane the trucker behind him couldn't see the light (and the one behind him couldn't see the light, and the one behin...).
When the OP moved to the left lane the trucker behind him could now see the light, but couldn't stop, or chose not to.
And the two behind him did the same.
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Old 08-09-2017, 06:55 AM   #5
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I don't think it's fair to condemn all truck drivers, but it does seem there are more cowboys out there than in the past.

I remember reading some years ago about Greyhound bus drivers being taught the concept of a "Stale green light". If you didn't observe the light changing from red to green, then you had to be prepared for it to change back to red at any time.

In my city, the traffic lights have been changed so the crossing traffic light stays red after the though light turns red - to allow additional time for the red light runners to clear the intersection. (well, maybe to allow the left turn cars to clear, but I still think it facilitates irresponsible driving).

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I told my wife if i ever need a brain transplant i want a trucker's brain its never been used
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Old 08-09-2017, 06:56 AM   #6
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Please don't take this the wrong way, but maybe by moving to the left your rig was blocking the view of the traffic signal head from the truckers view? I know there are times when a truck is in the left lane I can't see the traffic signal at all and don't have a clue what color it is. Now, I'm not one to say "OH well" and blow right through like your trucker friends did, but I will slow way down and stop if need be until I can be sure the signal is truly green. But then again, it could be the truckers were trying to prove "my rig is faster than yours" and they didn't want to be slowed down by something as silly as a red traffic signal!

In general I find truckers to be true respectful courteous professionals, but I always remember the jerks that seem hell bent on ruining that respectful courteous professional title.

Glad this worked out for you, and as always "trust your instincts". Sounds like you did and it may have saved your bacon.
If they couldn't see the signal behind me then he was following too close. My rig is way shorter in height than a Class A or fiver. No, they either weren't paying attention or didn't care. Either way, not what I would call "professional".
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Old 08-09-2017, 07:12 AM   #7
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If they couldn't see the signal behind me then he was following too close. My rig is way shorter in height than a Class A or fiver. No, they either weren't paying attention or didn't care. Either way, not what I would call "professional".
BINGO!! You follow the guy in front, not the light in front of him. Truckers these days are pressed hard to make schedules and limited by laws about driving times. Some few spend too much time goofing off and find themselves behind schedule for one reason or another, and then go hammer down for the next three days to make up for their lack of planning.
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Old 08-09-2017, 07:13 AM   #8
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Just got back from a 6,000 mile trip out to the West Coast and back. Every issue bar one had to do with truckers or the crap that falls off their loads because they're not secured. I'm talking tie down chains, straps and in one case, an extension ladder. And then there are those retreads that litter the roads.

I actually hit a fender that fell off a semi tracker trailer. Cost me a tire. Truck in front of me changed lanes right in front of me and blocked my view of the debris until it was too late.

On one stretch of I-80, I had a trucker pull up next to me and flip me off. He then continued to stay beside me for the next 5 miles at 63mph. I finally slowed to 45mph to get away from him. All this because I was driving 60 in a 65 construction zone (frankly, it should have been posted at 50, two-way, narrow and no divider, just cones).

And then there are those rapid-fire lane changes. What is it about these guys that they have to get back over in front of you as soon as the trailer clears your front bumper? And the real irony is then they drive the no faster or even slower.

I had far fewer issues once I was off the Interstates. Truckers seem a bit more mellow on the backroads.

If there are "professional" truck drivers out there, they clearly don't drive on the Interstates.

My takeaway is I'm staying off Interstates as much as I can. It's clearly not a place for sissies like me.
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Old 08-09-2017, 07:15 AM   #9
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I don't know why you would move to the left lane but I'm glad you did.

The first truck going on is understandable, but the other two are disasters waiting to happen.

As others have said, there are some really good professional truckers out there and then there are the others.

Thanks for sharing.
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Old 08-09-2017, 07:49 AM   #10
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There is a difference between us and the truckers. We are in our play space and they are in their work space. While we have equal rights to the road they should have a slight preference IMO. I try to stay out of their way and help them to get by me while I am traveling.

Truckers do not want to have an accident. They do not earn income while stopped. They only earn while they are moving so an accident is counter productive.
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Old 08-09-2017, 07:58 AM   #11
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And then there are those rapid-fire lane changes. What is it about these guys that they have to get back over in front of you as soon as the trailer clears your front bumper? And the real irony is then they drive the no faster or even slower.
I always roll my eyes when people say they flash their lights to let truckers know it's safe to pull in front of them. I have never had a truck pull back in front of me farther in front of me than I wanted.

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My takeaway is I'm staying off Interstates as much as I can. It's clearly not a place for sissies like me.
The problem with the other roads is the lights. I despise roads where the speed limit is 50 (or more) and there are stoplights. I watch the lights like a hawk, including gauging "staleness," but when I'm in an area I'm not familiar with, I just can't predict when they're going to change. It's fine in a car, but not in a 40-foot motorhome with a toad.
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Old 08-09-2017, 08:08 AM   #12
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In one area of my state, loaded coal trucks, some weighing a whopping 186,000 pounds would run a traffic signal because they just couldn't stop in time. Back 20 years ago+- we experimented with a system that would sense the truck speed and calculate if the truck could stop in time for the signal change. The system worked flawlessly and would hold the green longer to allow the truck to pass, or if already red and the computer calculated the truck couldn't stop in time, the signal would suddenly turn all directions red to stop traffic to allow the errant truck time to clear the intersection. It saved lives!

Although the system worked , the problem came in when the truckers learned they could just ignore the traffic signal and it would give them the green light anytime they wanted simply by not stopping!

What did work the best, along with a very big healthy dose of law enforcement, was a system where an advance signal set 1000+ feet before an intersection and a sign that proclaimed "Prepare to Stop When Flashing". This system is now in use country wide.
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Old 08-09-2017, 09:12 AM   #13
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There are a lot of good, safe, and courteous truck drivers. And then, there are some real bone-headed idiots driving trucks. It is the idiots that really ruin it for the good truck drivers.

It seems to me that these three truck drivers were idiots. For the first trucker to blow through a yellow light, that is somewhat understandable.
The second & third blasting through the intersection on a red light and at 70 mph... they should get an "idiot award".

I have driven on some of these roads in Indiana. Yes, it is a little odd that there are stop lights on highways, but it is the responsibility of anyone that gets behind the wheel of a vehicle to be aware of traffic signs & signals. If they were looking down the road and aware of what they were approaching, they could have made the stop. It is not a valid excuse that they couldn't see the light, until it was too late.
That no one was injured... or killed, does not minimize their carelessness.
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Old 08-09-2017, 09:39 AM   #14
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Yellow light allows first driver legal access to intersection. Second and third truck following close behind first truck are actually running the red light but since there was no time for a crossing vehicle to enter intersection between the trucks the chance of accident is reduced. A car stopped at a red light does not have the right to run into a object in the intersection regardless of the color of the light or who is right!

What could have happened didn't, truckers often are reprimanded or fired for tickets or wrecks yet they will push the limits to get the job done. We RVers feel we are on the road a lot but these guys/gals are driving every day and dealing with issues just like we do. Like many of the RV driving videos that I've watched tell you, you sometimes just have to bully your way through turns keeping in mind "you'll never see any of these folks again". Same way with truckers.
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