Team-BHP - Life threatening highway drives...

A very common sight when we travel on our highways is crashed vehicles beyond recognition. In most of these cases the chances of survival is limited. Occupants of the unfortunate vehicles too would have started the journey with a strong hope/belief " It wont happen to us". But a fault due to some reasons from some angle pull the curtains down - "THE END"

We all very well know the risks involved in our uncertain highways, a tractor coming in the wrong side, a govt bus traveling 2-3 kms at 60 kmph on wrong side avoiding 5 kms extra run "U" turn, pedestrians crossing the roads as if they walk on their backyard & vehicles doing somersault in the process to avoid, lorry parking without any indication or reflector boards in place etc etc

Given the above situation personally for me its something like, its better to minimize the time we expose ourselves to our risky highway. Travel when its absolutely necessary or unavoidable in personal vehicles on long trips else prefer some means of public transport. Buses/trains/flights too have ended up in crash, but the probability of fatal accidents is much much lesser in comparison. You cover larger distance by train or flight or bus, hire a cab for local sight seeing 'n' other stuffs.

Recently a neighbour has lost his son in a car accident & seeing the suffering of the people, I felt like 'why did he took the car". But I reason myself for not taking the other means of transport with "loss of comfort" that we enjoy with our own vehicles.

I get a feel that down the line my head will rule my heart. Have you ever thought from these angles? My head really wanted to have others opinion on this subject :)

You've written down exactly what I had in mind. And this is the ONLY reason that all of the 48,000 km in my VDI have been done in the city, discounting one trip from Gurgaon to Neemrana (about 100kms or so).

I think that its better to chicken out than to be involved in a high speed accident. But the mindset might change if I get a safer car like the Safari or something.

Even if both the above points do not guarantee safety, its a question of reducing the probability.

Naa rahega baans anyone ? :D

Sorry to hear about your neighbours incident, Do you have any clue how trhe accident was caused to sacrifice the life ?

Driving on highways is not always dangerous, it again depends. First we have to drive in our limits, follow lane dicipline, traffic rules, seat bealts, avoid unnecessary overtakes Left/Right, Stop when felt sleepy, Avoid fast/loud music which may tempt to drive fast, No street racing tempted by the neighbour vehicle, Using horn/indicators whenever needed ......

Still inspite of above precautions if the opponent makes mistake then its our bad luck lol:

Why not taking public transport seems to be the main question.

Well first of all car is becoming necessity rather than luxury. Its obviously safer than a two wheeler. And then there is comfort parameter rolled in along with mental peace. Even tried traveling in over crowded busses ? The main problem is mental peace. Anti social elements paradise it is. Ranging from all immoral practices to stealing, all are omni present.
So why not a car. And its not that always car will meet with a crash and people will die. Its depends on many parameters as we all know. Its something that we cannot run away from.

And considering the Indian HCV that are mostly the curlprit in fatal cases, no car is safe be it safari or scorpio. May be a Humvee is safe enough against them, but no road going car, not even Q7, GL, X5, Landcruiser. The HCV are very high set to even get proper damage.

And why they are involved in accdients more ? I believe its mentality or low moral of Indian citizens and Indians in general. Are they maintained properly ? Are the drivers trained properly ? All the specific tests conducted before handing over the license ?

Main reason for accidents :
1) Poor mentality ( improper maintenance, licencse handed over fast with some bribe, etc. )
2) Indiscipline.
3) Carelessness and sometimes over-confidence.
4) Luck.

About me, I am not scared to hit highway even in Maruti 800. Its safer than two wheeler, and much more comfortable and peaceful than public transport like bus and train. Bus and train journeys are nothing short of dreadful journeys. Full of anti social elements who can fall to any standards, and have usually bought Police/protection force before they commit some crime.

I endorse aaggoswami's views. While it is disturbing to see crumpled cars, it is equally distressing to see accidents in buses, trains, etc.]
This apart, there are several headaches with train and bus travel, some of which have already been brought out. Imagine getting a side upper or side middle berth on an AC 3 tier coach! Getting reservation is another nightmare, especially during holiday season.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Surprise (Post 1322892)

Given the above situation personally for me its something like, its better to minimize the time we expose ourselves to our risky highway.

and what will I do with life.

Just quoting what I had written in one of the best rides of my life here

Quote:

Originally Posted by bblost (Post 770571)

I am shivering from the cold and ride in almost pitch dark conditions.

Scared and cold.
But we have committed ourselves to the ride and there is no turning back.

I look at the riders along with me.
Each one a warrior.
All of us are scared and cold. But the man is us is shining right thru.
We love our life so much that we actually live it.

PS: no offence intended. Its just that I cannot live with the thought that road conditions will scare me off the road.

While I enjoy driving my car on highways / long drives, but I am very hesitant to take car on long distances for the reasons mentioned by Surprise in 1st post.

I always had a desire to drive down to Kerala (around 600 kms from Bangalore), but I am not confident looking at the conditions of Indian highways, traffic indiscpline by the road users.
So I prefer a train & travel peacefully over night with a good sleep!

If you are not confident of the drive/your driving then don't drive in the highways. You'll be worried and panic will grip you sooner then you expect and you'll make mistakes. But if you are confident enough and know the limits of your car and yourself then by all means take the car out. I always prefer to take my car then to take a private bus or other mode of transport(except for air travel ofcourse;-) ). Why, cause I trust myself more then that driver of the Bus.

An old lady in my apartment died while climbing down the stairs.
So we shouldn't use stairs.
And once i was stuck in Elevator for 5 Hours.

So what should i do to avoid accident, if i stay in top floor of an Apartment.

should i stay home?

There is no logic, to stop oneself for doing thing for the fear of accidents or failures.
People have measure Mt. Everest, because they dared, they developed necessary skills.

You can't live in fear.

Quote:

Originally Posted by thebagchi (Post 1323429)

There is no logic, to stop oneself for doing thing for the fear of accidents or failures.
People have measure Mt. Everest, because they dared, they developed necessary skills.

You can't live in fear.

I'll have to agree with this.
Just because someone did not take proper precautions (tyre pressure, sleep) etc. does not mean we will do the same.
A long journey, on a highway, is usually well chalked out.
Fuel & tire pressure checked previous night if not full servicing of the vehicle.
Not to mention the time of departure is fixed keeping in mind the time
of arrival @ destination with a good buffer.

All we can do is plan well and equip ourselves with safety.
If s**t is going to happen, believe you me, no amount
of anything can stop it even if it is a train or a plane.

As we all know a small screw in a plane is enough to
reserve a berth in the graveyard. (Nat geo air crash investigations :))

So relax and enjoy your respective highway drives.

My point is neither not to get into the highway ever with your own transportation nor public mode of transportation are the safest. Reasons for highway accidents & safe highway driving practices were discussed in detail in our own forum, but we all know the road discipline followed by our other road users. Its not about whether the public transportation is as comfort as car. Accidents happen everywhere, agreed, but the probability of survival on those high speeds (read highway drives) is much lesser.

Quote:

Originally Posted by hvkumar (Post 1122273)

Had 3 close encounters:

The worst being the dog-fight with the Swift Dzire in Orissa after Bhadrak, which almost resulted in a serious accident during one of those skirmishes. Quite uncharacteristic of me to do such racing, but sometimes such things do happen.

The other 2 occasions were caused by scooters suddenly darting across, resulting in lot of rubber being deposited on the GQ.

For an enthusiastic like HVK, he may drop "Life" down and drag 'Drive" to first place. Iam sure his skills, confidence and passion will keep him fine on his journeys. Though the ratio is towards "enthusiastic" in this thread, Iam sure not many will have the similar range skill set. Remember skill and safe driving practices can save you, but not all the time

kaushik_s, you made some valid points there. Again its not completely about the skill, its about the chances of survival within the shell.
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If possible to take a different mode of transportation without compromising much on other aspects, traveling in cars should be given a second thought. Why? One knows the reason. Loss of life is not worth the pleasure that we gain from such drives. It not only ends up right there & pains the ones who love the affected individual/family.

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