The Road Maniac and Pathetic Punishment Thread

[mjr]

Your opinion has nothing to do with what the people in court decided occurred here.

Apparently not. Motorists are judged by other motorists who generally seem to let them off lightly.

Nor, TBH, much to do with reality.

Oh go on then: what's an example of "momentary inattention" that can put you slap bang in the oncoming lane? The bends are not even mildly sharp on the section of road in question: no bend has chevron signs. The center lines for opposing directions have old-style lumpy catseyes and are over a foot apart: no reason for a car to cross them and you feel it if your wheel strays onto it. https://www.openstreetmap.org/way/4020186

 

[grldtnr]

I've driven that road through the forest a few times , it doesn't present a challenge, apart from a few turning for car parks and access
Its my belief the defendant was just being a complete Div ! Absolutely no need to cross the centre line, except in an emergency, or to avoid deer.
I don't recall any double white lines, so given all that, what was the reason for 'mometary laspe'?
Speed and watching his phone .

 

[icowden]

I don't recall any double white lines, so given all that, what was the reason for 'mometary laspe'?
Speed and watching his phone .

the investigation found that he was not speeding.

 

[Dogtrousers]

the investigation found that he was not speeding.

He was not breaking the speed limit. That's different. It doesn't mean that he was driving at an appropriate speed.

 

[Alex321]

Apparently not. Motorists are judged by other motorists who generally seem to let them off lightly.


Oh go on then: what's an example of "momentary inattention" that can put you slap bang in the oncoming lane? The bends are not even mildly sharp on the section of road in question: no bend has chevron signs. The center lines for opposing directions have old-style lumpy catseyes and are over a foot apart: no reason for a car to cross them and you feel it if your wheel strays onto it. https://www.openstreetmap.org/way/4020186

I have no opinion on the specific case at hand, as I do not know the area, and was not in court.

But actually, it is probably easier for a moment's inattention to put you on the wrong side of the road when it is NOT a twisty road with sharp bends. You are more likley to be driving "casually" (which I fully accept you should never be doing, but it happens), rather than concentrating fully.

 

[icowden]

But actually, it is probably easier for a moment's inattention to put you on the wrong side of the road when it is NOT a twisty road with sharp bends. You are more likley to be driving "casually" (which I fully accept you should never be doing, but it happens), rather than concentrating fully.

And to add to that, he was on his way home from work and was likely to be tired, plus a straight road with overhanging trees might have created a monotonous effect - often a factor in fatigue crashes.

 

[roubaixtuesday]

But actually, it is probably easier for a moment's inattention to put you on the wrong side of the road when it is NOT a twisty road with sharp bends. You are more likley to be driving "casually" (which I fully accept you should never be doing, but it happens), rather than concentrating fully.

It is, in my opinion, quite impossible to cross the road and hit traffic coming the other way due to a "moment's inattention".

It's not remotely credible. Not even close.

Whether from watching a video, or observing by an alien spacecraft in the sky, something has to completely take all attention away from the task at hand for a considerable period.

 

[FishFright]

I'm beginning to think some drivers find from those " little moments of inattention " understandable because of the number of times it's happened to them while driving.

Hand in your licence

 

[Dogtrousers]

I'm beginning to think some drivers find from those " little moments of inattention " understandable because of the number of times it's happened to them while driving.

Hand in your licence

I'm having a similar problem at work. Informing IT people that, in order to protect certain data, they have to do things that are really difficult and unwelcome and abandon current practices. "Whaddya mean we've got to do these complicated things? We've always done it our way, that's good enough surely?". I showed them a few data breach headlines from the press. "Yeah, but what we're doing is only a teeny bit insecure and it's always been OK".

"Whaddya mean I've got to pay attention while driving?" You can show nasty RTA pictures "Yeah, but I'm only fiddling with my phone a teeny bit and it's always been OK"

 

[icowden]

But actually, it is probably easier for a moment's inattention to put you on the wrong side of the road when it is NOT a twisty road with sharp bends. You are more likley to be driving "casually" (which I fully accept you should never be doing, but it happens), rather than concentrating fully.

And to add to that, he was on his way home from work and was likely to be tired, plus a straight road with overhanging trees might have created a monotonous effect - often a factor in fatigue crashes.

 

[icowden]

It is, in my opinion, quite impossible to cross the road and hit traffic coming the other way due to a "moment's inattention".

At 50mph you travel 22 metres in a second. So one second's inattention gets you quite a long way from where you should be.

 

[roubaixtuesday]

https://www.wattonandswaffhamtimes....-driver-spared-jail-causing-a143-fatal-crash/

Chris Youell, prosecuting, said: “The only possible explanation for being on the wrong side of the road is inattention.

“He has not been able to provide any explanation and in interviews with police afterwards said the last thing he remembered was leaving work.”

Analysis had found his phone had been playing YouTube at the time but there was no evidence he had become distracted by looking at it, he added.

The court was shown dash cam footage from Mr Steiblys’ car that captured the minutes before the crash.

In a statement from his widow Inga Steibliene said the devastating impact of his death “still seems like a nightmare”.

“I have lost a husband, my daughter has lost her father and his parents have lost their only son,” she said.

Brimson, of Drake Gardens in Swaffham, pleaded guilty to causing death by careless driving.

The court heard he was “deeply remorseful” for the deadly consequences of a "brief loss of concentration”.

Judge Alice Robinson said it had been a “very difficult decision” to suspend a seven month sentence for two years with a requirement to complete 250 hours unpaid work.
She said she had been mindful of the impact on his wife and his own young disabled son of immediate custody.

“There is no sensible explanation why this happened,” she said. “No sentence can make up for a family’s loss.”

He was also banned from driving for two years.

A charter for how to get away with using a phone in a car without facing the consequences. "Brief loss of concentration" my hairy arse.

 

[roubaixtuesday]

At 50mph you travel 22 metres in a second. So one second's inattention gets you quite a long way from where you should be.

Yeah, I'm sure you frequently find yourself heading directly for oncoming traffic after a moment's inattention, right?

Could happen to anyone.

 

[Dogtrousers]

And to add to that, he was on his way home from work and was likely to be tired, plus a straight road with overhanging trees might have created a monotonous effect - often a factor in fatigue crashes.

The judge said that it was "to this day unknown" why Bassam drove into oncoming traffic. If the ideas that he was likely to be tired, or that overhanging trees may have been a factor, were anything more than a uproven suppositions then the judge would surely have taken them into account.

 

[Dogtrousers]

The center lines for opposing directions have old-style lumpy catseyes and are over a foot apart: no reason for a car to cross them and you feel it if your wheel strays onto it. https://www.openstreetmap.org/way/4020186

That's a very interesting point. I admit I'm not a perfect driver and have had "moments of inattention" where my lane positioning has gone awry. Any bump-bump feedback from the lines on the road surface is something that has instantly brought my concentration back to the task in hand.

If this is the case, then the driver must have ignored for a period of some seconds not only everything that was visible through the windows, but also what could be felt through the car.