[Ragul]

The KSRTC bus literally swung into the turn at high speed ... callous negligence on the drivers part without watching out for the errant biker.

[ninjatalli]

Originally Posted by NG_EV

I was a victim of my stupidity in rains around 8 years ago.
...
That accident taught me the lesson of never riding without helmet and also to be mindful of the road conditions be it rain or fog.

+1

Same case with me more than a decade ago. Monsoon season + fast driving + wet roads = accident waiting to happen. The helmet saved my head and (thankfully) only superficial injuries to the body.

[Vasuki]

Originally Posted by supremeBaleno

Biker crashes into a KSRTC bus that is taking a right into the Mavelikara (KL) bus-stand.
The wet road should have made the biker slow down from normal speeds as braking & stability is affected.
Not clear from the video if the bus driver indicated his intention to turn using turn-indicator, but being the more vulnerable party,
the biker should have been more careful.

Hope he survived with minimal damage. The biker should have slowed down, after all it is his life. You don't expect KSRTC to slow down or show indicators.

It is a bus stand and they are bound to turn. He had a good indication from the bus before.

OT : It is Pandalam KSRTC statition, not Mavelikara.

[lina]

Originally Posted by Bhokal

Isn't there supposed to be a traffic signal at every zebra crossing?

No, Zebra means pedestrian has right of way. If there is a signal, then pedestrian has to wait for the signal.

[jinojohnt]

Originally Posted by supremeBaleno

Biker crashes into a KSRTC bus that is taking a right into the Mavelikara (KL) bus-stand...

I don't subscribe to the view that the biker is at fault.
Agreed, the biker should have been careful since it is his life, and it is foolish to expect a govt bus driver to follow the rules or be kind on the road. It seems to be a judgement error from the biker, he didn't expect the bus to turn. He hardly got a second to react (from the point of bus turning to hitting him). I am thinking he was going below 40 km/hr, as it looks like he travelled 11 meters in a second before impact (approx). Whether 40 is overspeeding in the rain, depends on your ability to control the bike in an emergency (which he didn't).

As per rule, the bus was supposed to wait for oncoming traffic before crossing and turning to the right, but we don't expect a KSRTC driver to follow rules, do we?

If we understand why KSRTC drivers mostly don't use hand signal/indicator and turn quickly without warning, we will be able to be more alert and avoid accidents.
1. KSRTC buses do not have power steering, and it is easier to turn the steering when the bus is moving fast. This is one of the reasons why KSRTC buses do not slow down when turning. (Steering becomes heavy when you slow down).
2. Also, you cannot keep the right hand out for a signal, and turn the steering with the left hand at the same time. Bus steering needs more circle turns (and is heavier) than a car steering. I have seen some KSRTC drivers show hand signal for 2 seconds, but what's the guarantee that you are looking at him, at the exact time?
3. With the seat position of the driver being a bit away from the side, most drivers will need to lean to the side to even keep the palm out for a hand signal.
4. The ever debated "nobody can touch me on road or in court" attitude. That is why some drivers don't use indicators as well.

[msarunms1987]

Not sure if this has been posted earlier. Looks like a bunch of irresponsible lads!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GgAyrrRUaVM&t=27s

I wonder how these people even get hold of the car keys!

[binand]

Originally Posted by jinojohnt

It seems to be a judgement error from the biker, he didn't expect the bus to turn.

If we assume the biker is a local he should surely know the bus stand is where it is and chances are that any bus coming on that road might want to turn into the stand?

My guess is that since it is raining, the biker must have been severely visibility-impaired. You know how it is; you can't raise your head and look ahead because of the rain droplets.

[silversteed]

Originally Posted by jinojohnt

...
1. KSRTC buses do not have power steering, and it is easier to turn the steering when the bus is moving fast. This is one of the reasons why KSRTC buses do not slow down when turning. (Steering becomes heavy when you slow down).
2. Also, you cannot keep the right hand out for a signal, and turn the steering with the left hand at the same time. Bus steering needs more circle turns (and is heavier) than a car steering.

Some factual errors in this post.
1. KSRTC buses (for that matter, all heavy commercial vehicles) sold after the mid nineties have power steering in India - it's mandated by law. This particular bus is less than 7 years old.
2. A bus steering is far easier to handle than that of some cars.

The bus driver probably was caught up in a trolley problem, and chose to avoid panic braking (which might've sent the bus fishtailing).

Was the bus driver at fault? I'd say yes - I don't see the indicator or the driver signalling by hand, and the bus wasn't at a safe speed for this maneuver.

Was the biker at fault? Maybe, he was a bit faster than necessary for the conditions and lacked awareness of the surroundings. Another KSRTC bus turned in into the depot before the incident and that should've alerted him.

[sanjaykk]

Looking at this frame, the biker has already crossed the entry gate to the bus stand. If the bus hadn't tried to cut across the way it did, the biker would've passed safely.

The biker did have the right of way; the KSRTC bus should've stopped/slowed down before making the turn and not barged into oncoming traffic.

[m_sobin]

This accident happened today morning in Thodupuzha, Kerala. I was in shock after watching this video and happy to see that the lady escaped.

As per Police, the person who drove the car was drunken. And the autorickshaw driver was admitted in hospital and his condition is not bad.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V2AtW0k_LcQ&t=52s

[ecenandu]

What a lucky escape for the lady.

https://youtu.be/2RDZ3gcoglA

[vvivek85]

I noticed an accident last Sunday while I was returning back from Kumbakonam (Trichy - Chennai Highway) and I thank my stars as I could have very easily been involved in one.

It was around 6 PM, considering it was a long weekend there were quite a many movements of vehicles right from Madhurantakam. I was maintaining a speed of 60 kmph with a decent amount of gap between the front car. I was driving in the second lane and the left adjacent lane is for bikes. All of a sudden a Fortuner zip passed me to my right and was trying to overtake the car which was ahead of me. As both the lanes were busy, he tried his luck to overtake both the cars by using the available space in bike lane, but 50 m ahead of him there was a rider in the bike lane. Instead of refraining from overtaking he tried to squeeze the humongous vehicle, I sensed something wrong is going to happen and took my foot of the pedal, within a fraction of second the rear of the car hit the rider's handle, as a result of which the biker couldn't control and did a 180* turn and fell on my path, I braked on time and my car stopped inches away from the bike and biker. More importantly, I was not rear-ended aswell, the car behind me too stopped on time. I went out and checked the biker's well-being, he had some bruises on his palm but thankfully he was doing fine. Post confirming his well-being, I continued my journey. I was in a state of shock for few minutes thinking what all could have gone wrong had I not braked on time. Thanks to God.

Biggest lesson is to maintain a good amount of gap with the front vehicle. Had I not maintained a sufficient gap between the front vehicle, the consequences could have been much worse.

Thanks for reading, drive safe. Cheers

[goandude]

Did the Fortuner speed off after causing the accident?
It probable had dark windows and a political flag on the front.

[Thad E Ginathom]

Originally Posted by vvivek85

I sensed something wrong is going to happen and took my foot of the pedal

Super response. It should not be, but it is, a rare skill, to read ahead and sense what even might happen ahead, and slow down accordingly.

So what if nothing happens? Nothing is lost. Not even time: when slowing down in traffic, one can always catch up again.

In this instance something did happen, and your skills kept you safe from a bad accident.

[vvivek85]

Originally Posted by goandude

Did the Fortuner speed off after causing the accident?
It probable had dark windows and a political flag on the front.

Yes, Fortuner sped off after causing the accident. Not even a courtesy to check if the rider is fine