Lorry driver doesn't see car attached to his bumper

Dna Mach · Mar 19, 2010

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A5g6AJbQKfo

[FONT=Arial, Verdana]A HAULAGE company has reopened an investigation into a motorway accident after a video was posted on the internet showing a car trapped sideways on the front bumper of one of its wagons travelling at 60mph.
A passenger in a nearby car captured the footage on a mobile phone.
It shows a lorry operated by Sandbach-based Arclid Transport travelling along the A1(M) near Wetherby in West Yorkshire with a blue Renault Clio attached to its front.
West Yorkshire Police said officers had become aware of the 22-second video on Wednesday and would be working with the company to establish the exact circumstances of the incident which happened in January.
It remains unclear exactly how the car got lodged, or how long the motorist remained trapped, or why the lorry driver appeared not to notice the car.
The footage available on YouTube also includes a male voice shouting: "He hasn't seen it!!"

A West Yorkshire police spokesman said: "On January 13 at around 8.30am we attended a road traffic collision on the southbound A1 near Wetherby to a report that a blue Renault Clio had been in collision with a HGV.
"At the time of our attendance there were no injuries and both vehicles were on the hard shoulder of the motorway. As a result, at the time, the incident was treated as a damage only-collision. However, in light of the new evidence that has come to light we are reinvestigating the collision and the matter has today been passed to our major collision enquiry team and enquiries are ongoing."
A spokesman for the Sandbach company, which employs 30 staff and has 25 wagons in its fleet, said an investigation had been launched. An Arclid Transport spokesman said: "An incident did happen along a stretch of the A1(M) and we opened an investigation and reported the matter to the police.
"That matter had been formally closed until we saw the video. As a responsible company we have reopened that investigation."
The spokesman said that the lorry driver had stopped and that the motorist was unhurt.
Barry Proctor, a board member of the Road Haulage Association and owner of Talke haulage firm Barry Proctor Services, pictured, said: "It must have been terrifying for the driver, although it's difficult to say what's happened.
"I also know that the drivers at Arclid Transport have a lot of experience.
"What I don't think people realise is just how many blind spots lorries have even with all the mirrors with which they're fitted.
"I had a school visit to demonstrate the blind spot at the front of the cab. A teacher sat in the driver's seat couldn't see a pupil until they were 20 feet away."
Paul Biggs, Staffordshire co-ordinator for the Association of British Drivers, said: "It could have ended in tragedy. It does show how mobile phones can be used to bring new evidence to light." [/FONT]
Click to expand...

http://www.thisisstaffordshire.co.u...h-inquiry/article-1926962-detail/article.html

Swaps · Mar 20, 2010

holy crap!! He HAD to have noticed SOMETHING!!!

Dna Mach · Mar 20, 2010

That's what I would think ! After reading the article it appears a standard accident was investigated at the scene. This video surfaced on YouTube a few months later leaving the authorities to ask "WTF" The motorist probably told the Police he was pushed a little ways but this video shows it was a long ways !

Twinkietamer · Mar 20, 2010

That reminds me of the incident where a truck driver didn't realize there was a man in a wheelchair attached to his grill. Except that a car is substantially bigger than a wheelchair!

stranger · Mar 20, 2010

There's been many times I wanted to do that.

lovesthedrive · Mar 20, 2010

What I don't think people realise is just how many blind spots lorries have even with all the mirrors with which they're fitted
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Uhhh maybe on an american truck with a long nose, but on a cabover!!??? I DONT THINK SO!

Dna Mach · Mar 20, 2010

Twinkietamer said: ↑

That reminds me of the incident where a truck driver didn't realize there was a man in a wheelchair attached to his grill. Except that a car is substantially bigger than a wheelchair!
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I remember that one ! Here's the story http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/274287/michigan_man_in_wheelchair_pushed_down.html?cat=16

The driver pulled into his companies yard with the guy stuck in his grill !

Swaps · Mar 20, 2010

lovesthedrive said: ↑

Uhhh maybe on an american truck with a long nose, but on a cabover!!??? I DONT THINK SO!
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you ever been in a cab over?

You can't see a #### thing below the windshield.

lilillill · Mar 22, 2010

lovesthedrive said: ↑

Uhhh maybe on an american truck with a long nose, but on a cabover!!??? I DONT THINK SO!
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Think again... look here:

http://www.thetruckersreport.com/tr...orts/105589-whats-that-smell.html#post1264887

Dna Mach · May 27, 2010

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/art...nted-Renault-Clio-motorway-60mph-cleared.html

AS her car was pinned sideways to the front of a lorry and shunted down the motorway at 60mph, the internet was the last thing on Rona Williamss mind.
But when footage captured by a passenger in a passing vehicle was posted on YouTube, she found herself a web sensation.
And among those intrigued by the drama were the police.

Wedged: Lorry driver John Tomlinson was cleared of any wrongdoing after his lorry was pictured shunting a car sideways along the A1
Yesterday, the driver of the tanker, John Tomlinson, appeared before a tribunal, faced with being stripped of his heavy goods vehicle licence over the incident.
But as well as being cleared of any wrongdoing he was praised for his handling of the near-disaster after a police report found that Mrs Williams had been to blame.
The accident happened in January on the A1 near Leeds but was only investigated after dramatic footage was published on the internet showing the Renault Clio wedged against the front of the tanker as it sped down the fast lane.
At the time, Mrs Williams, 31, told the Daily Mail she had no idea how the lorry had hit her car as she was tootling along to work.

'Ill advised': Vet Rona Williams undertook Mr Tomlinson's 40-tonne lorry on the A1 near Leeds and tests revealed he would have been unable to see or hear her after she hit his lorry
She insisted she had not deviated from her path when she felt a knock and found herself trapped under the trucks bumper.
As she was pushed along the motorway, she rang 999 on her mobile phone and begged: Im going to die, Im going to die! Can you do something?
In a desperate attempt to catch the tanker drivers attention, she yanked on her handbrake, sounded the horn and flashed her hazard warning lights.
I kept thinking, Nobody knows Im here. Nobody has seen me, she said. I tried everything.

Exonerated: A tribunal praised Mr Tomlinson for his actions after he was alerted to the presence of Ms Williams' car by another driver
Mr Tomlinson was completely unaware of her presence until another driver flagged him down.
He pulled on to the hard shoulder where Mrs Williams, a vet from York, escaped shocked but unharmed. Her £6,000 car sustained only a dented side and worn tyres.
When the footage emerged on YouTube in March, it attracted millions of viewers and prompted the police to relaunch their inquiries into the incident.
During the investigation, Mr Tomlinson was suspended from his job delivering loads of silica sand for Cheshire-based Arclid Transport.
Yesterday, he appeared before North West Traffic Commissioner Beverley Bell, who was told police had concluded that Mrs Williams had pulled out in front of him from the left in an ill-advised manoeuvre.
Tests had confirmed he could not have seen or heard the car wedged in front of his cab, and the hearing praised his actions.
Exonerating him, Miss Bell concluded: You showed, in my view, coolness and a clear head.
I feel it is entirely inappropriate for me to take away your licence. You, your employers and the haulage industry should be able to hold your heads up high after this incident.
Afterwards Mr Tomlinson, from Clitheroe, Lancashire, a lorry driver for 29 years, appeared close to tears as he said he hadnt decided whether to resume his career.
His solicitor, Sean Joyce, said his client had been wholly vindicated of any wrongdoing.
He added: This incident was, as they say, a freak of nature and purely accidental.
Additional mirrors fitted to new lorries are meant to eliminate the blind spot which meant the Clio couldnt be seen. Arclid has now installed these on its fleet.
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