[ph03n!x]

Originally Posted by condor

A little north of Belgaum, on the NH, on the south-bound side. ...
...

It's abysmal that we continue losing life to underrun accidents.

Even the few trucks I've seen with underrun protection have it for namesake - the horizontal metal bars are held in place by (relatively) flinsy mounts that'll give way at minor shunts.

We need proper legislation for all commercial vehicles such that they clear fitness certification if - and only if - they have underrun protection that are certified for something like 56 KMPH or 64 KMPH.

Accidents and deaths are not caused due to a single reason (which is usually termed "overspeeding"), but a culmination of reasons. Underrun protection, bad banking/ unscientific roads, along other infrastructural and procedural deficiencies are what is making us thr nation with highest deaths in road accidents.

My heart-felt condolences to the departed's family

[condor]

Originally Posted by ph03n!x

It's abysmal that we continue losing life to underrun accidents.

My heart-felt condolences to the departed's family

Thanks, @ph03n!x. He is survived by his mother here, who is now alone. Sis lives abroad.

But this doesnt seem to be a case of over-speeding + truck in front stops/slows down + collision. It's on the side of the road, and no brake marks. Not aware of him being a rash driver - if yes, the word would have been shared in the circles. And it is a straight hit, not at an angle/one-side impact. Let's see if any other details emerge.

[aaggoswami]

Originally Posted by condor

The couple were both young doctors, with a very young daughter. The family was known to our relatives.

My heartfelt condolences to the family of departed, May God give them the strength to overcome the grief.

In the attached image it looks like there was under-run protection but only for name sake, may be repaired after a damage. HCV on Indian roads need a lot of regulation specially working tail lights and a proper under run protection bar.

Unfortunately it looks like venturing on Indian roads is becoming alarmingly dangerous by each passing day.

[Rohan265]

Originally Posted by condor

A little north of Belgaum, on the NH, on the south-bound side. Wonder what happened, because there are no braking marks of the Innova, and the truck is parked on the side. The debris behind the Innova could indicate that it hit something and lost control. The couple were both young doctors, with a very young daughter. The family was known to our relatives.

Attachment 2284803

Attachment 2284802

It is highly unlikely for an Innova to push a truck of that size. Most likely the Innova rear-ended the truck and got stuck there. The truck driver has possibly carried the Innova off the road. That is why we see a trail of debris behind the Innova. Vehicles getting stuck under the truck is common in underrides. I have seen trucks drag cars for KMs because the truck driver doesn't realize that a car is stuck behind.

Although the pictures are limited, I noticed that the car has gone through the middle of the truck's rear. In cases of speeding/avoidance, cars have an offset collision with the truck's corner. This is almost a zero-degree collision. Sleep or lack of visibility of the truck seems more likely. What was the time of the crash?

Also, do you know if a child seat was used?

Originally Posted by ph03n!x

It's abysmal that we continue losing life to underrun accidents.

Even the few trucks I've seen with underrun protection have it for namesake - the horizontal metal bars are held in place by (relatively) flinsy mounts that'll give way at minor shunts.

We need proper legislation for all commercial vehicles such that they clear fitness certification if - and only if - they have underrun protection that are certified for something like 56 KMPH or 64 KMPH.

We have legislation (IS 14812:2005) for underrun protection devices (UPDs) that provides specification and testing parameters for these devices. Even the RTO fitness forms require a check for UPDs. Like other things, the problem lies in the implementation. Neither the RTO nor Police enforce them. That is why, as you rightly pointed out, we have makeshift metal bars being used as UPDs.

At this moment there is no incentive nor priority to regulate UPDs. When it comes to safety, the focus is on getting 5-star cars because the world is doing so. Car fatalities in India are mainly caused due to underrides. At the current rate, the best solution to reduce underrides is through ADAS as it removes the reliance on regulation and enforcement. However, ADAS has its own problems.

[audioholic]

Originally Posted by Rohan265

It is highly unlikely for an Innova to push a truck of that size. Most likely the Innova rear-ended the truck and got stuck there. The truck driver has possibly carried the Innova off the road. That is why we see a trail of debris behind the Innova. Vehicles getting stuck under the truck is common in underrides. I have seen trucks drag cars for KMs because the truck driver doesn't realize that a car is stuck behind.

We have legislation (IS 14812:2005) for underrun protection devices (UPDs) that provides specification and testing parameters for these devices. Even the RTO fitness forms require a check for UPDs. Like other things, the problem lies in the implementation. Neither the RTO nor Police enforce them. That is why, as you rightly pointed out, we have makeshift metal bars being used as UPDs.

If the car irrespective of the model was at say 80-100kmph, it would still push a truck forward by a few feet at least. The truck would be around five times the weight of the Innova and hence when the Innova comes to rest it would at least transfer 1/5th the momentum it carried. Hence I cant believe that the truck would have stayed stationary.

Unfortunately majority of our trucks and buses have the main chassis ladder quite high up compared to a developed country like in the EU, where most heavy vehicles excluding tippers and cement mixers have the chassis ladder quite low, or if not it would have the ladder itself extended downwards in the rear end of the vehicle. That would help create an ideal frontal crash scenario where most of the design or safety elements would work best.

But this is India.

[Lobogris]

Originally Posted by ph03n!x

We need proper legislation for all commercial vehicles such that they clear fitness certification if - and only if - they have underrun protection that are certified for something like 56 KMPH or 64 KMPH.

Fully agree with you. In addition, a lot of trucks and buses are missing rear lights. That is so obvious to see at night but they continue to ply on manor highways with impunity. What is urgently needed is a properly trained and dedicated highway patrol force to patrol all highways.

[JediKnight]

Originally Posted by audioholic

If the car irrespective of the model was at say 80-100kmph, it would still push a truck forward by a few feet at least. The truck would be around five times the weight of the Innova and hence when the Innova comes to rest it would at least transfer 1/5th the momentum it carried. Hence I cant believe that the truck would have stayed stationary.

This generation of Innova had a kerb weight of 1.7T add 300 KG weight for the passengers and luggage the total weight comes to around 2T. Single axle HCV have a GVW of 19T. But mostly in India they will be overloaded. So if this truck is loaded it would be safe to assume a weight of 20T or more. So the weight of the truck would be 10 X not 5 X. Also you are assuming a fully elastic collision where the the colliding bodies regain shape post impact. In that case there will be complete momentum transferred. Here most of the energy will be dissipated in deforming the Innova's body and very less actual momentum transferred to the the truck itself. I have seen several rear ending videos at high speed where the truck did not budge a cm.

[audioholic]

Originally Posted by JediKnight

This generation of Innova had a kerb weight of 1.7T add 300 KG weight for the passengers and luggage the total weight comes to around 2T. Single axle HCV have a GVW of 19T. But mostly in India they will be overloaded. So if this truck is loaded it would be safe to assume a weight of 20T or more. So the weight of the truck would be 10 X not 5 X. Also you are assuming a fully elastic collision where the the colliding bodies regain shape post impact. In that case there will be complete momentum transferred. Here most of the energy will be dissipated in deforming the Innova's body and very less actual momentum transferred to the the truck itself. I have seen several rear ending videos at high speed where the truck did not budge a cm.

Can’t you see in the picture that this is an empty truck? Yes even assuming the weight would be 10 times that of the Innova, the truck can’t remain stationary. And we are only talking about a few feet here not like the truck was set in motion, which can happen even when the car is still deforming.

[chef-de-jeep]

Originally Posted by sanchari

DMK MLA's son killed in road accident .

DMK MP NR Elango’s son Rakesh dies in car accident in Tamil Nadu

Looks like a Thar from the image.

Happened to see the Thar at the Kottakuppam Police station. The air bags had deployed and car was a write off. Sorry for the loss of life that had to go with it.

[JediKnight]

Originally Posted by audioholic

Can’t you see in the picture that this is an empty truck? Yes even assuming the weight would be 10 times that of the Innova, the truck can’t remain stationary. And we are only talking about a few feet here not like the truck was set in motion, which can happen even when the car is still deforming.

Thanks for pointing out that the truck was empty. But a truck can very much remain stationary when hit from behind at high speed by a relatively smaller vehicle. Some time back in this thread itself there was video posted of a Brezza with hitting a parked truck at high speed with truck barely registering the blow but the Brezza completely destroyed.

[condor]

Originally Posted by Rohan265

. What was the time of the crash?

Also, do you know if a child seat was used?

Not sure if a child seat was used. Possibly not, though they both were doctors. We do know that the child was in the back seat. But being a child, she would not survive the impact against the back of the front seat itself.
(My wife, wife's friends, the deceased doctor, are all alumni from the same college. Pics from the mortuary were circulated within their groups).

The accident happened at around 4 pm, and they were on their way back from Belgaum. ( I initially thought they were heading towards Belgaum).

[SinghShu]

https://www.carblogindia.com/tata-ha...-accident/amp/

As per the details we have with us, the SUV was travelling at a very high speed (150-200 kmph) and hit multiple vehicles before flipping over and splitting into two. In this impact, two of the occupants of the vehicle lost their lives on the spot while the third occupant succumbed to the injuries the next day.

Another such incident that forces you to think, what are people thinking before driving at such high speeds. Most of the Indian roads are not meant for such speeds. Actually scratch that, I doubt any Indian road is meant for 150 kmph.

Irrespective of how many stars your car carries, an accident at such a speed is bound to be a bad news. Numbing and shocking!

[saikarthik]

Sad incident! Saw a similar news about the Altroz. These people are behaving as if they are immortal in a 4-5 star cars. Even if they are, they can't put others on road to the risk. Also, makes me wonder how the side impact to a pole or tree affects a good old ladder frame SUV like TUV300 or Scorpio.

YouTubers are mercilessly targeting Tata (Desi loha) now after Kia/Maruti Suzuki. People have to see behind the frames to understand the truth these days!

[skb1811]

I bet that most of these people think that having a 5 star rated car makes it invincible... And hence, get the confidence to go upto 150-180kph, Even an S class, E class, or 5/7 series, or any German car that is used to going such speeds, isn't safe at those speeds. Then, there's the road design, and the type of barriers used... None of India's roads (apart from airport runways maybe, and probably the Buddh Circuit) are meant for such speeds, even doing just 80kph, is scary, because you don't know what object is going to pop up from somewhere, no matter how concentrated you are on the road..

R.i.p. the occupants.

[akn1984]

This Harrier accident took place in Handia, Prayagraj, around 28th or 29th January this year.

I happened to pass by the wreckage on 30th January. The car was destroyed beyond recognition. The carcass of the car was resting on the median. In fact, it was not just two pieces, the car had broken up into at least three parts! The wreckage was terrifying!

The accident took place on the six-lane Prayagraj-Varanasi stretch of the Golden Quadrilateral. The stretch is a paradise for car lovers. People tend to overspeed on this stretch.

One thing that needs to be pointed out, no matter how safe your car is, you are always vulnerable in high speed. It doesn’t matter whether you are driving a Kia or a Tata, a high speed collision is likely to end in catastrophe. People need to drive carefully and responsibly!