Minor crash become major, car crashes into stopped vehicle

There has been some criticism in Reddit with regards to the tow truck. Some have stated he should have placed flares or pylons down ahead of the minor accident scene to warn drivers of a hazard ahead. I have seen one tow truck block with its amber lights flashing block a lane while the other attends.

Re: move over law.
We don't have that law, but I do move over a lane if it is easy to do. If there is a lot of traffic I find it safer to just move to the left of my lane, people panicking to move over a lane ASAP before they get a fine can't be safe! However we only have a shoulder next to the slow lane, working next to the fast lane must be a lot worse.

Its called the Move over law but should actually be called the move or slow down law. Essentially if you are unable to safely move to the next lane, one must slow down.

https://www.ontario.ca/laws/statute/S02021
https://www.caasco.com/OM/Advocacy/HeadsUpOntario/Slow-Down-Move-Over.aspx

Move/over slow down has been law for drivers approaching police vehicles stopped on the side of the road for over a decade or so. Its just been since 2015 that it has extended to tow trucks. I have made lane changes well in advance of an emergency vehicle only to have the car behind me accelerate towards the stopped vehicles after I have made my change. As such, I now slowly drive toward the vehicle.

Although I support the law and have been making lane changes before it has become law, I have a some criticism of it.
  1. There is no mention as how much to slow down. I feel it should be about 40 km or slower to allow for one to react to workers opening a door or falling.
  2. The drivers hand book should recommend that drivers in lanes not bordering the emergency law slow down or make it easy for those in the lanes running along side the emergency vehicle to make lane changes.
  3. It states if police vehicles or emergency blue or amber overhead lights. It should state if it appears any vehicle is assisting another.

We haven't had any trouble with people getting spooked and slamming the brakes or making unsafe lane changes when approaching this. However, I believe @SawMaster 's state they have trouble with it though.

Videos from myself on the topic.


For the one below , a police officer of all people made no effort to slow down or change lanes. It apparently it was ok as the tow truck neglected to put on his amber lights.
So if the police officer saw a child or animal moving towards the road, would it be ok to continue at the same speed?

 
I'd like to see a similar law here, but it wouldn't be enforced, so there's not much point.
I move over when passing any stopped vehicle on a motorway. Ever been in a parked car when something goes past at 70mph just inches away? It's scary. The buffeting can feel like you just got hit. You have to be pretty selfish or ignorant to put someone through that.

Sent from my SM-G903F using Tapatalk
 
The real question - why are there no police vehicles on scene given that this accident is clearly blocking an entire lane of travel?
 
The real question - why are there no police vehicles on scene given that this accident is clearly blocking an entire lane of travel?

I normally see fire trucks in front of the accident, but that is if there is an injury. Apparently the tow truck driver called in the accident to police and was on his way to respond. Given that it was a curve, he should have either have put pylons or blocked the scene before other responders arrived.

A few days after that incident, on a regular road one interchange away from the accident I posted, I saw how it should be done when an accident scene is obscured by hills or turns in the road

 
There are some signs regards this on the major highways, and the local news stations gave it good coverage, but when most of the drivers here treating traffic laws as suggestions with many seeming to feel they are exempt from them, it does no good:confused: And the law itself is somewhat vague, saying it applies to "emergency vehicles" then not defining what those are. Nor does it make it clear what slowing down "substantially" means. With most folks here going well over the speed limit, they would be slowing substantially by just doing the speed limit as they passed by o_O

Having a functioning brain is not a prerequisite to getting a SC drivers license or to becoming a lawmaker here. Perhaps they need to be requiring that ;)
Phil
 
If you put flares or cones down, the idiots run over them, TOO.

It's DAYLIGHT. It's not difficult to see a non-moving object(s) ahead of you if you look.
 
If you put flares or cones down, the idiots run over them, TOO.
And you put yourself at risk of being run over while putting out the flares, cones or whatever.
 
Well, I think it would have been best if he blocked the scene before others arrived. I don't know what can be done, in the age of the distracted driver, to make it safer for those involved in an accident where there is a vehicle disabled on the road.

Even police vehicles with their lights on aren't safe.

 
I drove past highway 7 today, where that clip was taken where a CRV crashed into a police cruiser.

. i also typically just slow down because i know people behind me will just floor it and go past the emergency workers at speed.

http://www.dps.texas.gov/director_staff/media_and_communications/pr/2018/0131a
I have found that best thing to do too, though if i was on a road with not traffic or considerate drivers (south Western Ontario people and NOT Torontoians) I would move to the next lane. I drove slow enough that if a door should open, or someone stumble - I can stop easily.
 
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