[Soumyajit9]

Originally Posted by phamilyman

Excellent insights there mate!
You learn something new everyday!

Eeeeeeee !!! Before anyone jumps to conclusion and beat me black and blue, let me say honestly - I don't support tailgating and everyone should maintain 1 or 2 car gap atleast.

I do maintain a good 2 car gap while I am in 5th or 4th gear. However in bumper to bumper traffic crawling at 1st gear, I practically follow the bumper to bumper quote. This to simply avoid people (bikers) to sqeeze and scratch my car all over and then start ranting on me, worse come in front of the car, lose balance, fall and die.

[balajird]

Originally Posted by Soumyajit9

However in bumper to bumper traffic crawling at 1st gear, I practically follow the bumper to bumper quote. This to simply avoid people (bikers) to sqeeze and scratch my car all over and then start ranting on me, worse come in front of the car, lose balance, fall and die.

Exactly mate, this is what I do as well, it is better to drive bumper to bumper to avoid the bike riders to squeeze in. Sadly, I used to do it (Squeezing between the cars) when I rode bike 15 years back, now that sane sense prevails, better driving and riding skills are displayed

[n_naik]

Third accident pic that i am posting in 2 weeks !!! This accident happened 2 days ago on NH4 near Ranebennur. 3 people died. :( (Photo courtesy: My friend in Hubli)

[supremeBaleno]

A freak accident on the way to work today morning. It was odd because traffic was sparse due to being pre-rush_hour and also because of school vacations.

I am in the 2nd lane at Kotturpuram signal behind an Etios taxi. Adjacent to me on the 1st lane (close to median) is a Tata 407 with a Sumo in front of it and a white Fortuner in front of the Sumo. I can see the rear-left part for the Fortuner and I am admiring its looks, the Fulltime AWD sticker etc. The signal turns green for us and everyone slowly moves forward. We have not even crossed the intersection when I see all vehicles in front braking, starting with the Fortuner. The Sumo rams the Fortuner, while the 407 rams the Sumo. Funnily enough, the Etios in front of me also scrapes its front-right side, though beats me why he should be involved.

Not sure what exactly happened at the front of these vehicles, but I could see a Scooty Pep fallen with a lady beside it. The Fortuner braked to avoid hitting the Scooty and the vehicles behind it could not brake in time. All parties get down to assess the damage and meanwhile the girl gets on the Scooty and rides off, much to the dismay/anger of the rest of the group who ended up with damaged vehicles for no real fault of theirs.

[Dodge_Viper]

Last Sunday I happened to see a strange accident on expressway (towards Mumbai side). A state transport bus probably had hit the barricade on the left side and went down. It was half on the road and half outside.

A couple of feet away, a Honda City was in extremely bad state. Crushed from behind, sideways front, top. Though there was no mention in any newspaper, I wonder what would have happened.

[MotoNanu]

Originally Posted by n_naik

Third accident pic that i am posting in 2 weeks !!! This accident happened 2 days ago on NH4 near Ranebennur. 3 people died. :( (Photo courtesy: My friend in Hubli)

I saw this when I was coming back from Hubli on Wednesday. The bus had collided with a truck carrying rock/ stone! Hence the huge momentum and abrupt stop! Was really a sad scene.

[n_naik]

Originally Posted by MotoNanu

I saw this when I was coming back from Hubli on Wednesday. The bus had collided with a truck carrying rock/ stone! Hence the huge momentum and abrupt stop! Was really a sad scene.

Do u have any more details about this incident ? Was that truck parked on the shoulder lane or was it broken down in the middle of the road ?

[Thad E Ginathom]

Originally Posted by supremeBaleno

A freak accident on the way to work today morning. It was odd because traffic was sparse due to being pre-rush_hour and also because of school vacations.

I am in the 2nd lane at Kotturpuram signal behind an Etios taxi. Adjacent to me on the 1st lane (close to median) is a Tata 407 with a Sumo in front of it and a white Fortuner in front of the Sumo. I can see the rear-left part for the Fortuner and I am admiring its looks, the Fulltime AWD sticker etc. The signal turns green for us and everyone slowly moves forward. We have not even crossed the intersection when I see all vehicles in front braking, starting with the Fortuner. The Sumo rams the Fortuner, while the 407 rams the Sumo. Funnily enough, the Etios in front of me also scrapes its front-right side, though beats me why he should be involved.

Not sure what exactly happened at the front of these vehicles, but I could see a Scooty Pep fallen with a lady beside it. The Fortuner braked to avoid hitting the Scooty and the vehicles behind it could not brake in time. All parties get down to assess the damage and meanwhile the girl gets on the Scooty and rides off, much to the dismay/anger of the rest of the group who ended up with damaged vehicles for no real fault of theirs.

Of course it's their fault! Usual story: drive too close and then blame the person in front for stopping.

It is actually harder to appreciate the danger at slow speeds. One of my mantras, to remind myself, is, Just because the vehicle in front starts moving does not mean it will go on moving.

The last time I was rear-bumped was because I thought it unwise to run over a woman who crossed at a junction just as we all began to move off. The behind guy seemed to think that the I should have

[nijelj]

Originally Posted by supremeBaleno

All parties get down to assess the damage and meanwhile the girl gets on the Scooty and rides off, much to the dismay/anger of the rest of the group who ended up with damaged vehicles for no real fault of theirs.

If this happened abroad,the last vehicle would be paying for all the damages! Here the fortuner stopped in time(if he was not the cause for the lady falling at a red light) but the guys behind couldn't/didn't.

[MotoNanu]

Originally Posted by n_naik

Do u have any more details about this incident ? Was that truck parked on the shoulder lane or was it broken down in the middle of the road ?

When I saw it, both the bus and the truck were in the shoulder lane. I am not sure of what exactly happenned. Also, there was no one around who could have given some detail on this.

[binand]

Originally Posted by supremeBaleno

...the rest of the group who ended up with damaged vehicles for no real fault of theirs.

No fault of theirs? The 2-second rule is there for a reason. It is not just a good idea, it is sound advice for safe driving.

[Shiv_1984]

Originally Posted by supremeBaleno

A freak accident on the way to work today morning. It was odd because traffic was sparse due to being pre-rush_hour and also because of school vacations.

I am in the 2nd lane at Kotturpuram signal behind an Etios taxi. Adjacent to me on the 1st lane (close to median) is a Tata 407 with a Sumo in front of it and a white Fortuner in front of the Sumo. I can see the rear-left part for the Fortuner and I am admiring its looks, the Fulltime AWD sticker etc. The signal turns green for us and everyone slowly moves forward. We have not even crossed the intersection when I see all vehicles in front braking, starting with the Fortuner. The Sumo rams the Fortuner, while the 407 rams the Sumo. Funnily enough, the Etios in front of me also scrapes its front-right side, though beats me why he should be involved.

Not sure what exactly happened at the front of these vehicles, but I could see a Scooty Pep fallen with a lady beside it. The Fortuner braked to avoid hitting the Scooty and the vehicles behind it could not brake in time. All parties get down to assess the damage and meanwhile the girl gets on the Scooty and rides off, much to the dismay/anger of the rest of the group who ended up with damaged vehicles for no real fault of theirs.

Well, when the signal turns green, how fast people can really accelerate. The above story of yours tells that. Usually, when a signal turns green, cars start crwaling and it takes minimum 1 min for them to come to normal speed. I can only think the mistake to be of those vehicles.

[supremeBaleno]

As mentioned, I could not see what had happened with the Scooty and who was the cause of her falling - possibly her own mistake or got entangled with another bike alongside - her Scooty was perpendicular to the road when I saw it. Hence gave the benefit of the doubt to the vehicles, since the last thing one would expect while moving off from a signal is to immediately brake while maybe moving from 1st to 2nd gear at best. Yes, no denying we need to account for all possibilities, but where is the concept of space in Indian city B2B traffic ? Not only would it be tough to apply the 2-sec rule in this scenario, but if you do manage, you will find the space occupied by some other vehicle. This is not to say the vehicles were not at fault, but there are practical issues involved.

[rahulk2510]

Strange accident on Gandhi flyover after IIT bombay. The car (maroon i20)was perpendicular to the road and caused bad traffic jam behind.

I wonder how car managed to bang the flyover wall? Didnt see anyone hurt as the owners were busy checking the damage.

[Thad E Ginathom]

Originally Posted by supremeBaleno

... the last thing one would expect while moving off from a signal is to immediately brake while maybe moving from 1st to 2nd gear at best. .

No, not at all the last thing: it is the first thing one should be ready for, every time.

No, the two-second "rule" (which I consider inadequate, it is not enough) is not useful at those speeds --- but being ready, and simply having room, to stop is vital. The damage you saw thjat day, and the damage I suffered on another day, proves the point.