Wife has near head-on with careless, lane-crossing 18-wheeler

[erkme73]

I'm beginning to think someone's got my number. With a near head-on with a church van, and now my wife nearly getting destroyed by an 18 wheeler, I feel like our time is almost up.

This happened this past Thursday as my wife was coming home from a 12-hour shift in the ER. The combined closure speed was likely greater than 100mph. As she approached the narrow, shoulder-less bridge, the oncoming 18-wheeler drifted into her lane. She slammed on the brakes (the sound you hear is contents on the passenger seat sliding onto the floor) skidding to a near stop. There was likely less than 6 feet width between the trailer and the guardrail on her passenger side. If she had hit her brakes just a half-second later, it would have been lights out. I cannot believe she didn't lose her mirror to either the truck or the guard rail.

I drove the same bridge today and eyeballed the measurements. It was a miracle.

Now here's the part that really pisses me off. You can clearly identify the truck company (Universal out of Warren, MI). You can read the truck (and trailer) number. With those things, I found their website and FB page. Starting on Thursday, I began contacting them via their contact form, their FB page (you can see my comments on all their latest posts), and DM via FB. Last night I sent them notice that if I didn't hear back from them by COB today, I would contact their local media affiliates (out of Detroit) to help expose their callous attitude toward complaints of the motoring public. I fired off an email to their FOX, ABC, CBS, and NBC affiliates tonight.

All joking aside, this could have easily left me a widower, and my children without their mother. The least they could do is acknowledge they received my complaint and say that they will address it with their driver. Their silence conveys complicity. I'm pissed.

 

[LateralNW]

I'm beginning to think someone's got my number. With a near head-on with a church van, and now my wife nearly getting destroyed by an 18 wheeler, I feel like our time is almost up.

This happened this past Thursday as my wife was coming home from a 12-hour shift in the ER. The combined closure speed was likely greater than 100mph. As she approached the narrow, shoulder-less bridge, the oncoming 18-wheeler drifted into her lane. She slammed on the brakes (the sound you hear is contents on the passenger seat sliding onto the floor) skidding to a near stop. There was likely less than 6 feet width between the trailer and the guardrail on her passenger side. If she had hit her brakes just a half-second later, it would have been lights out. I cannot believe she didn't lose her mirror to either the truck or the guard rail.

I drove the same bridge today and eyeballed the measurements. It was a miracle.

Now here's the part that really pisses me off. You can clearly identify the truck company (Universal out of Warren, MI). You can read the truck (and trailer) number. With those things, I found their website and FB page. Starting on Thursday, I began contacting them via their contact form, their FB page (you can see my comments on all their latest posts), and DM via FB. Last night I sent them notice that if I didn't hear back from them by COB today, I would contact their local media affiliates (out of Detroit) to help expose their callous attitude toward complaints of the motoring public. I fired off an email to their FOX, ABC, CBS, and NBC affiliates tonight.

All joking aside, this could have easily left me a widower, and my children without their mother. The least they could do is acknowledge they received my complaint and say that they will address it with their driver. Their silence conveys complicity. I'm pissed.

I don't even park that close to semi's.
Lucky it was daylight.
Glad your wife got home safe and sound. We all need our medical staff to be kept safe.
I do wonder if that semi actually fits on that bridge within the lines?
Perhaps they need to consider a different path with wider roads.

 

[Nigel]

the oncoming 18-wheeler drifted into her lane.

Looks like normal driving to me, didn't have enough space on his side so used a little of yours, perfectly normal for large vehicles to do that, and perfectly normal for them to expect you to take account of their size and make some extra room for them.

Maybe it is not normal where you live, but if that had happened here, I would probably have slowed a little on approach to the bridge so that we didn't pass at the narrowest bit, certainly would have if I had been driving a wide vehicle, he did get to the bridge first.

Couldn't spot their response on FB...

 

[erkme73]

It is not normal. The width of the lanes are uniform. It is the shoulder that disappears. I have crossed that bride with oversized logging trucks going the other way and they never cross the center line. If you look closely, you can see that the passenger side of the truck has more than enough room between the truck and the white shoulder line to avoid coming near the centerline.

This was inattention or carelessness on the part of the truck. There was zero reason for him to be on her side, and zero reason for to expect him to do so.

 

[Nigel]

This was inattention or carelessness on the part of the truck. There was zero reason for him to be on her side, and zero reason for to expect him to do so.

I think it was intentional, the driver being careful not to hit anything on the shoulder. He did move over exactly as he got to the narrow bit, so I don't see any reason to think it was inattention.

Yes, I agree the lanes are uniform, and that the driver didn't need to pull out, but at the same time, it was tight, and from the truck driver's point of view moving out to the centre line was maybe sensible. I don't think his mirrors fit between the centre line and the edge line, they are at least going to overhang the lines, so to stay on his side required cm accuracy? Not really sensible to expect everybody to drive with mm accuracy.

Should we make a little extra room for truck drivers when the roads are not ideal for the size of their vehicles? Sometimes it is absolutely necessary, sometimes it is sensible, sometimes it is not needed.

 

[joe384]

I think it was intentional, the driver being careful not to hit anything on the shoulder. He did move over exactly as he got to the narrow bit, so I don't see any reason to think it was inattention.

The bit of the bridge actually looks wider though!

 

[kamkar]

Not much, but that is exactly what it take to set off a catastrophe.

Bridge look wide enough, maybe even for 2 professional semi drivers, but like here, there are a lot of people driving around that have no feeling for the size of their vehicle, and generally keep at least 1 M / 3-4 feet from things on the Right, and are extremely reluctant to go more right than that.
I personally have no problem putting my Right side tires within 10 CM / 4 inches of a roadside or side marker line, and thats at speed, in town i will do the same with a tall curb that would eat my tire and kill my alignment in a heartbeat, even if the speed are then lower, cuz i will of course lower my speed in situations like that.

So here, where there are room for a semi / bus + a car, many car drivers will be reluctant to go if it is just 2 cars

These things are on my aggravation list, but do not rank that high on it.

Here i feel a little like one or both, should have lowered speed so the crossing point was not right on the bridge, just like i / we do here with a cyclist cycling at the side of the road,,,,,, get off the gas a little, so passing him can be timed with no oncoming traffic or a gap in that traffic.
I do so CUZ as a former cyclist myself, car drivers cant really give you enough space, so i pull way left to where my wing mirror are in the opposite lane,,,,,, actually if there is no traffic i will even cross double solid lines to make even more room, even if thats not allowed.

BUT ! i am also a very nice guy

 

[Nigel]

The bit of the bridge actually looks wider though!

Where they actually met is slightly wider, and so the truck driver moved back in, he is not actually over the centre line when they are alongside, only on it; assuming the car was driving in the centre of its lane then there was no issue?:



And if the camera car had slowed just a little on approach to the bridge then he would have been back on his side of the centre line when they met.

 

[joe384]

Where they actually met is slightly wider,

No it's not, it's narrower, you can clearly see the barrier on the non-bridge section is closer to the road than the bridge wall.

and so the truck driver moved back in, he is not actually over the centre line when they are alongside, only on it; assuming the car was driving in the centre of its lane then there was no issue?:

Are you sure? The front trailer wheels go over half the filled pothole, the back trailer wheels cover it up, so if the front wheels are on the line, the back wheels are definitely over the line.

And if the camera car had slowed just a little on approach to the bridge then he would have been back on his side of the centre line when they met.

Why would he back on his side of the centre line if the point where they met is narrower? And if there is room on the narrower section (before the bridge) why was he on/over the centre line while crossing the bridge?

More likely he drifted over the line, saw the car coming and moved back over at the last minute. Absolutely no reason for him to cross the centre line in the first place.

 

[Nigel]

No it's not, it's narrower, you can clearly see the barrier on the non-bridge section is closer to the road than the bridge wall.

Based on the lane markings it is the same width throughout!

Are you sure? The front trailer wheels go over half the filled pothole, the back trailer wheels cover it up, so if the front wheels are on the line, the back wheels are definitely over the line.

He turned back in, the front wheels went first, the rest followed with a bit of a delay, it takes time for a vehicle that size to change lane, and the car was going fast enough that it got there before all the truck wheels had crossed back.

 

[kamkar]

We are starting a argument here, we should just agree on this should not happen again.

Thankfully OP wife seemed very calm in the moment, i assume there are many others that would have reacted less fortunate, and probably also some that somehow would have made this into a disaster, and these latter people could well have been in either vehicle.

 

[Nigel]

Thankfully OP wife seemed very calm in the moment,

Losing 50 MPH in 2 seconds is calm?

 

[thomas-dash]

Losing 50 MPH in 2 seconds is calm?

Calmer than swerving into the side of the bridge I would imagine.

 

[dash riposki]

make the video public, and make sure you list the DOT and icc number of the carrier in the description and title.
This makes them nervous, and may get you some attention.