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-   -   When road dividers crash into you for a change! (https://www.team-bhp.com/forum/road-safety/154265-when-road-dividers-crash-into-you-change-3.html)

Mukund, this is a scary incident which yet again highlights the unimaginable circumstances that Indian roads create you. From flying stones to wells dug up in the middle of the road to open canal embankments to now.. flying divider blocks. Wow. Ofcourse, vehicles flying down the wrong side of the highway on the fast lane is way too normal to count as an event anymore. Glad you were buckled up. Gladder still that no one was hurt and may this ordeal get over soon for you.
I do use this flyover quite often and I never overtake on this stretch, especially if its a heavy vehicle, precisely because I don't trust them concrete blocks. You end up going too close to the blocks if you overtake and even one of them out of line will hit you hard. Would prefer getting honked from behind by impatient cabbies to that!
That said, this too shall pass.:)

True. But when I try rethinking the circumstances, some of the possibilities are far more grim. Here's what I assumed happened with the truck. The driver might have dozed off and drifted to the right. If the blocks weren't there, he'd probably have directly hit us instead. I guess the impact with the divider might have jolted him awake and hence the quick escape post the incident.I usually never overtake on that flyover but since it was early morning and I'm not really a fan of driving behind trucks considering the risks should they lose control I try to overtake whenever possible. Considering the same scenario, probabaly had I not overtaken, and it were the truck in front of me that took the impact and lost control or suddenly stopped, we might have even rear-ended the truck which might have resulted in far serious consequences. That being said, the point is, stuff happens around us no matter how carefully we drive. What matters is the safety of the car you are in and if you are buckled up! In my scenario, I guess my Figo handled it pretty well :)

Its horrifying to read about this mishap. These incidents are a polite reminder of how unpredictable driving is and what can go wrong in milliseconds. Am glad you are unhurt and so are your Co passengers. Thanks also in part to the additional safety features on your car. Just hope that now you get your car repaired with as less hassles as possible. Best of luck.

At 5:30 am in the morning on an under-construction flyover, you've got to be very careful. I live very close to that area and have heard several stories from my neighbors regarding mishaps on that flyover and even when that flyover was under construction...

During night and wee hours of the morning, especially between 3:00 am and 6:00 am, one has to be extra careful... I prefer not to drive during these hours as most nocturnal drivers are on the verge of their next accidents... You must count yourself very lucky as no-one was injured in your vehicle.

Stay Safe Mate..

Oh boy. That's very very sad. Been on that flyover a couple of times, and used to curse those blocks.

Has Ford got all the parts? What is the status of the car now? Was your car under warranty? If yes, what happens to it? Does it carry on as is or will the new parts have a warranty of their own?

Also, could you please share the link to the repair manual? I tried searching but couldn't find it.

:thumbs up
MaSh

A very unfortunate incident. Good that all you guys are sound and safe.

On a side note, the accident seems to have happened just after you have overtaken the truck on the curve (feel free to correct me). Overtaking on such a narrow flyover that too on a curve, be it inward or outward is definitely not recommended. The marking on the flyover clearly seems to indicate, one track is for 4/4+ wheelers and the other for 2 wheelers.

So, could this have been avoided? Well, you never know!

Drive safe.

P.S: Just my opinion, hope no offense.

Sad to see this happen. Hope that you get your car back to original condition soon.



Those concrete blocks is the responsibility of authority responsible for maintaining the road. The very authority which receives the ridiculous bloated road tax in Karnataka. :Frustrati

I only wish that our system upgrades itself so that citizens can hold these authorities responsible and subpoena them into taking ownership and responsibility. And I wish (again...!) this does not remain a wishful thinking!

:OT
Open ended question!
What will it take for Bangalore traffic to mobilize all these big trucks, etc. NOT to ply within the city roads from say 7AM till 9 PM? I have seen such protocols being implemented elsewhere.

I usually avoid driving during these hours though it's a really beautiful time to drive and actually enjoy it! But that day I was returning from office. Thanks to the globalization of IT some of us have to end up working like owls


That's the happy part about today. I went down to the ASC and this time luckily I met Babu and he was happy to show me my car was almost ready. When I had some queries about what had been replaced he was more than happy to put the car on a ramp and show me the changes. Just a few minor stuff left before they hand over the car to me next week.

Best part about the visit was he let me take a test drive. It felt awesome getting behind that wheel again! :D I wasted no time and took the car to the highway going to Nelmangala. It handled the way it always did and actually the gears felt smoother for some reason. Only thing I noticed out of the ordinarily was when I let go of the steering it stated slowly drifting left. Mentioned the same to him. He told that they'll get that tested and get the alignment done. I couldn't click any pictures since they had to yet wash the car and I wanted to take the pic of the car in its former glory :)

Also clarified your doubt with him. I currently have my 4th year warranty running and he mentioned it will not be voided and also the new parts carry a 6 month warranty.

Can't wait for next week already!


None taken. As another member pointed out this is actually a 3 lane fly over that has been temporarily divided to allow traffic on both sides hence it looks this way. Though its wide enough that even after the accident other vehicles and truck had enough space to continue. Only hold up I guess was vehicles driving past slowly trying make sense of what happened and probably going home with assumed stories that goes like guy got drunk and hit the divider!

And regarding my decision to overtake the truck I'm not really a fan of driving behind trucks. Especially during night since 70% of these trucks have broken non-working brake lights that make it really risky driving behind them at night.

Sorry to hear what happened. Good to know that nobody is hurt.

I am a regular on this road and it is terrible that the construction agency is using those blocks as a make-shift divider. For those not familiar with this road, they have built a 3-lane flyover which is meant for A-to-B traffic. The B-to-A flyover is work-in-progress and till such time the 2nd flyover is completed, the 1st flyover is used for two way traffic by placing those big blocks in the middle as a make-shift divider. So you get a little less than 1.5 lanes on each side of the divider. These blocks are always nudged out of line by some careless vehicle thus making the road narrower than 1.5 lanes at some points. As the experienced Bangalore drivers would acknowledge, you either give the drivers 1-lane, or 2-lane road. Never give them 1.5 lanes because everyone want to squeeze and overtake.

I must add though that your choice of the spot to overtake was a poor one irrespective of consequences of not overtaking. Just follow the truck at a safe distance for just 10 meters and you have the full 3-lane road available for your overtaking, etc. I also blame the truck guy for giving way to you to overtake on this narrow road that is about to end.

I think large carriers are allowed inside the city only between 10 PM and 6 AM, No?

I do not know how "large" is what large you are referring to. But I see multiple of them (6 wheeled to 10 to 14 wheeled) plying at least thought the outer ring road. And they get stopped as well by white uniformed people for questioning, checking, and significant something else, thereby creating a pile of traffic mess.

Now if such roads are part of some crucial route link, I believe someone needs to come up with a plan to get some kind of bypass created. please:

Alas, damage to this thread's owner is already done (probably many others as well). We can only wish that it does not happen to someone else.

I take this flyover daily albeit on a bike as I work in manyata. This is a dangerous flyover and the authorities think they are doing the public a favor by allowing two lanes of traffic on this flyover till the other flyover is completed. While their thought is pretty good, the execution is ridiculous. Sometimes when I am riding along this "so-called" divider I see one lone stone completely perpendicular to the rest and resting in the path of my tyre. Scares me out completely.

I wish we could sue the authorities for their incompetence. The biggest problem is the lack of accountability and a scientific approach to public spaces and utilities.

This is quite an experience, and quite shocking in that it is rather an unexpected one.

I take this flyover towards KR Puram daily, and I always actively block other 4 wheelers from attempting to overtake me - its just not worth the risk of managing the nearness of the vehicle on the one side, and the free-standing blocks on the other.

The individual stones that are pushed out (typically at the end closer to Kammanahalli) are usually due to 2 wheelers who want to go from the service road near Bhimas to the main road heading towards Sultanpalya and merrily cut across the oncoming lane of traffic, make a hole through the stones, and merge.

I had a strange crash right infront of my office on Bannerghatta road, 2 days back I was waiting at my office exit to take a right turn towards IIM bus stop, our security people control traffic during peak hours here, saw a chance and moved towards the divider and was turning slowly, an auto was in a hurry and was trying to come in my way. I thought of letting him so braked, there is a slab like thing placed vertically at the end of divider, I never thought it wanted to come with me in my car, the moment I turned I realised I hit something, thought the rear door had gone for a toss, I did not want to see what the damage was but found the slab out of its place from the divider. Later I parked and checked the damaged part, it was the running board luckily. Will share the pictures shortly.

Hi All! I finally have some good news to share. I got the car back this morning. The final bill came to around 1.13L for parts and labor and the insurance covered 1.02L. So I had to fork out around 11.2K from my end for the consumables and parts not covered by insurance. I have attached the bill below and will be posting pictures and a review of the way the car now handles in a couple of days.

Thanks everyone for all the valuable advises shared. Looking forward to years of troublefree miles ahead!:)