Bad Auto Accident
 

Yesterday I had to take a detour because of a bad traffic accident on Rt 44,
Just read on the online newspaper that the truck driver involved got ticketed; however, another factor that should not be overlooked and is really important to members of our community.

As we age, we should all be aware that our night vision & reaction times are not they used to be. The driver of the car was a Wildwood resident aged 84 & the accident happened @ 5:40 am.

I avoid driving during darkness, unless its a necessity. If you can make sure your next car is equipped with adaptive cruise control and super headlights.

Vision is the key to safety.

I very much agree with you and share your sadness in hearing this. But we drove over to Gator Joes at Lake Weir with friends last night and noted that at that time it was still complete daylight. Many villagers have cataracts that are very close to needing to be removed and are not aware of it. There are all kinds of things that worry me about local drivers including their drinking habits and whether they drove much at all before they moved here.

Super head lights, sure you can see like it day light outside, but oncoming traffic is blinded. I wouldn't consider that too safe if oncoming traffic blinded by halogen lights.

I can remember my old 53 ford with generator and 6 volt system on narrow dark street, now those were the days of not being able to see. Now we got train lights shinning in or eyes, only thing missing is the sway back and forth.
IMO the brighter the light in old eyes the less you can see. :shocked:

I've got super headlights--they don't blind anyone-, they turn as I'm turning and auto dim as the radar- that senses other vehicles in range, they also dip as you crest a hill.

Never put a price on safety--adaptive halogen or LED headlamps are the way to go. They have saved me from meeting Bambi on numerous occasions

GG, The OP said the accident occurred at 5:40 AM not PM. Sunrise is about
7 AM so it was dark. Never liked the 12 hour time system, the 24 hour time system is better.

:agree:

Vision is the key to safety. Yes night blindness is one cause, heavy rains another, direct sunlight can temporary blind your view, vehicles ahead that obstruct your view, DUI/Impaired

Distractions also a factor (cell phone, fiddling with make-up, the radio, etc

Slow reactions times, over correcting..... cooler heads prevail

Statistically, you are better to hit a deer than making an erratic move which may cause you to hit a tree or flip your vehicle

You have most likely seen the Subaru and VW commercials with their auto stop feature--these features are no longer the realm of high end exotic cars, the radar works even if your blinded by moving sun or driving in rain.

Don't put $$ ahead of your personal safety--you are here to enjoy retirement, not endure it

Another safety hazard directed toward poor vision is windshield glare. This happens both day and night. Polarized/non-glare glasses help tremendously. Also, keep your windows clean, you'd be surprised how much a dirty windshield can reduce your vision. Wiper blades need to be checked and replaced when needed. A bad set of bladed during a rain will also impair your vision, plus they can leave very fine scratched in the glass.

This may sound like a joke, but I'm always surprised how many folks I see driving with their sun glasses on after sunset. I guess they forget they have them on...wow my eyes are really getting bad all of a sudden.

It was reported the truck driver was making a u turn. It's quite possible the driver of the car saw the headlights of the truck turning left, thought a vehicle had turned left, when in fact the road was blocked by the trailer that may have been, but probably wasn't equipped with running lights.
It could be the driver had good eyesight, and then again maybe not so good. There were reflectors lining the side of the truck, but it's possible the cars headlights didn't hit them adequately. It's all speculation, I just hope the occupants all survive and fully recover.

One of the items on our fatal MVA checklist is the condition of the windshield, dirty (inside and out, cig smoke, etc), scratched, cracked or broken. Wiper blades, worn or missing, etc, etc, etc.

I could easily see a driver being temporarily blinded by headlights from the truck, especially if the high beams were on. Under those circumstances, the driver of the car probably never saw the trailer. With the car that close, it appears the drive of the truck was wrong to start the u turn, assuming the driver had headlights on. I see so many drivers using DAYTIME RUNNING lights, in the early evening. These give the appearance to the opposing driver that the car is much further away.
Hopefully there will be some follow-up that will provide the actual cause.

What really needs to be looked at is the hours of service with the Prime Driver. Driver Fatigue is a very big issue in the trucking industry. The great majority of drivers are paid per mile or a fixed commission for a load. They are allowed to drive for a certain amount of time and then must be off duty for a certain amount of time. The rule book a CDL driver must abide by is very lawyer friendly and open to various interpretations. It sort of reads like the bible. I am not certain but I believe that company uses electronic logs that will be easy to study for law enforcement. God help the people in the car, God help them and the Truck Driver if he was violating the law on the time rules. Commission work or per mile would be a magnet to make many violate the law because if the truck is sitting the money is not flowing. Unfortunately look at the results of possibly trying to make a couple of extra dollars. Very sad. Give these rigs all the room they need and more, it's a rough way to make a living. I don't really mean to judge, I wasn't there.

What no one is mentioning is that the truck driver was ticketed for violation of right of way. That might indicated that he just turned in front of the other vehicle and the driver had no chance to stop. It could be that the truck driver was tired and used poor judgement.

The accidents that are happening on 466 and 44 could be avoided if they would simply turn the left arrow to red. Having a solid green for all traffic is foolish. If I'm not mistaken, the great majority occur because of this. Wondering out loud how hard it is to make this simple change.

I feel badly for the older driver. They had the right of way.