Safe Speed Forums

From YouTube. DOENI road safety.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=atEs5qbC ... e=youtu.be

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Anyone who tells you that nothing is impossible has never bathed in a saucer of water.

All good advice, but I'm not convinced in a properly equipped HGV there are any blind spots; just places that the driver doesn't look.

I sat in one once (they do regular sit ins in London) and what I got told was a blind spot, disappeared when I leant over a bit.

As usual - WEEPY MISSES the point . Any vehicle can have a blind spot. I have one in my car- it's on the right hand side over my right shoulder, so when I want to move out on a motorway I LOOK. Sound advice ,given freely on this site. I use it two ways- as a driver about to move out ,i look, BUT as a driver about to pass another car, I check to see if it MIGHT move out. I had a discussiion some time ago with HGV blokes on the trucker forum on here, about turning out of Y junctions, and the need to get both roads at 90degrees to cab, else you were blind in one or both directions. HENCE,most fokks who've driven anything larger than a car lok out for drivers of anything bigger having a blind spot. Forget the pious approach ,as in "IF i MOVE,i CAN SEE ROUD THERE". The question I ask / ,whether as a pedestrian /disabled scooter /car /van driver ( and I suspect drivers of heavier vehicles ) also ask is let's not ASSUME we can be seen, let's ASSUME we can't .

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lets bring sanity back to speed limits.
Drivers are like donkeys -they respond best to a carrot, not a stick .Road safety experts are like Asses - best kept covered up ,or sat on

Surely then it's not a blind spot then is it? You can see if you look.

When you're walking would you class the area behind you as a blind spot because the back of your eye sockets are in the way?

YES!, next question and try to make it a sensible one please.

No doubt you would like the HGV driver to get out and walk the circumference of his vehicle before moving off?

Do you not realise that any driver has to watch the lights, watch other traffic moving around them and plan the manouvere, all in a few seconds. Do you stretch you body all round your car, looking in every mirror and then over both shoulders as the lights turn green or do you just pull away?...I suspect the latter myself. Maybe if you were to actually gain an HGV license you would start talking sense for once.

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My views do not represent Safespeed but those of a driver who has driven for 39 yrs, in all conditions, at all times of the day & night on every type of road and covered well over a million miles, so knows a bit about what makes for safety on the road,what is really dangerous and needs to be observed when driving and quite frankly, the speedo is way down on my list of things to observe to negotiate Britain's roads safely, but I don't expect some fool who sits behind a desk all day to appreciate that.

He doesn't have to get a HGV licence. Just get out in a van ( any size will do ) and turn right at a "Y" junction, and see how blind you are to the left. Few years ago ,I used to take a van home. One day I was returning van and was stopped by a group of kids in the street. In the wing mirror I saw three kids cross behind me and two emerge on the other side.The third was sat on the rear step. It was a regular occurrence to find cyclists on slower sections and bikers tag on behind and only visible on corners. If I'd stopped in a hurry, I suspect the biker would have been OK,but a cyclist on wet roads,with wet brakes -he'd leave a face imprint on the rear door. Wouldn't do any brain damage- if he's got that close, he'd no brain to loose. Perhaps ,just perhaps, WEEPY might consider that we all occupy the same road space ,so we can fight ,where the poorest protected will suffer ( cyclists), or agree to respect each other and get shot of those who don't want to live by the rules. .

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lets bring sanity back to speed limits.
Drivers are like donkeys -they respond best to a carrot, not a stick .Road safety experts are like Asses - best kept covered up ,or sat on

There are usually 6 blindspots in all cars, however moving a few inches in the right direct (& at the right time) will show you what might be in that area. However you cannot look and see 'through' every blind spot. You cannot look all the time to cover all the blind spots.
A lorry driver observed in his mirror will not guarantee that s/he HAS seen you. Only if you get a definite acknowledgement can you be sure they have seen you BUT that cannot guarantee that they are then going to 'let you go first', can it?
It's no guarantee of intention or action.
Waiting to give way to the lorry is the safest action depending on your route (right, left or straight) and his route. If turning left I'd often hang back and let the lorry go, they are slow and need respect and space.
But if he's turning left and I'm going right depending on the width of the road and other traffic I'd either hang back (still) or go to his right at the front, keeping in the left side of the right turning traffic (in 2 lane situation with a left lane going left).
That is safest and best practice.
If you've been in a lorry Weepjg then you will know there are massive blindspots that many cyclists can hide in.
A vehicle/car waiting at a roundabout can easily NOT see you in their A pillar blind spot so allowing for this is crucial to your safety - you do, do that don't you ?

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Safe Speed for Intelligent Road Safety through proper research, experience & guidance.

Unfortunately ,we have now a blame culture ,rather than a look out for no 1 culture. To a lot of those not driving ( or thinking like some one sat in the driving seat of the vehicle manoeuvring), he attitude sadly is that "I can see you, so you MUST be able to see me". Not. "has/can the driver see me".
As a lot of posters know, I used to be employed by a rail contracting firm. on track, a driver would ,on spotting persons on track ( i nearly said workers, then remembered there's a lot of network rail blokes on track ) sound the horn. Persons would then acknowledge and move to a position of safety. Similarly ,on the access road on last work site, I used to come upon blokes walking down the road. Toot of Horn - they acknowledged and moved to side of road, till I passed. I warned of my presence- they acknowledged. Had they not acknowledged- I'd been obliged to stop ,till I'd come to an arrangement to pass them safely . Out of the gates ,on to public highway and meet a group of pedestrians. Horn would be met with fingers rampant, and attempts to block passage.
How many of us see a HGV/BUS ETC turning left at a mini island and pull up short. WHY - they NEED extra room to manoeuvre. No need to take a truck out- it's as easy demonstrated in something like a small van. Pull up to a Y junction and look right- all you see is inside of van. THAT'S why most van drivers sit straight on to junction.

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lets bring sanity back to speed limits.
Drivers are like donkeys -they respond best to a carrot, not a stick .Road safety experts are like Asses - best kept covered up ,or sat on