There were two cars sat in front of me at a set of red traffic lights this evening.
First car - a marked police Focus - turns on his blue lights and drives across the junction with the traffic lights still on red, and then disappears into the distance.
Second car duly follows as if being towed, only to stop on the far side of the junction, presumably when the driver realised what had happened.
Me? I admit I put the CC3 in gear to pull away too, but realised in time the lights were still on red.
I think the driving of the second car was poor, but could best be described as: "Easily done if you're not concentrating."
Anyone else done something daft while thinking about other things?
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Done it a few times, the car in front moves off and I get ready then suddenly I realise I haven't even checked if the lights have changed. I have never actually gone through on red though.
An easy mistake to make but also one with tragic consquences.
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A friend in a VW microbus once drove into the car in front of him waiting at a roundabout, when the car in front of that drove off.
Reflex, not concentrating... my guess is that the exact same accident occurs several times a day country-wide, usually with little damage but much embarrassment. Especially if the culprit vehicle has a high driving position and a dreamy driver, causing temporary, hallucinated occlusion of the vehicle in between. It's funny really.
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...A friend in a VW microbus once drove into the car in front of him waiting at a roundabout, when the car in front of that drove off....
Lud,
I'm sure I read something from an insurance company to say the type of accident you describe is by far the most common on British roads.
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So my assumption is supported ifithelps... must have come within an ace of doing it myself a good few times. Don't think I've ever done it, exactly like that, but can't really swear to it.
Sometimes the remote past seems to be a blur of squealing tyres and crunching metal.
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I have had two UK "accidents" where I have been stationary and someone has driven into me at low speed.
I was in a long queue of totally staionary vehicles, front and rear when I was rammed in the boot. " Sorry my foot slipped off the clutch". My reply was obvious " Why was your foot on the clutch when nothing was even attempting to move?
I started to pass a car parked on my left when I stopped to allow an oncoming vehicle through. The driver was looking at the houses or something and instead of coming through the gap ( cars parked on her left ) and then swinging back to her kerb, she just drove straight into me. Doh !
We were stationary, in the shopping road of Guildford near Perth WA, waiting for someone to reverse into a parking slot on our left when we took a big hit in the rear. A young lass chatting to her mates. She saw us too late.
Three of us with whiplash so of to A & E. ( We got VIP treatment cos my daughter knew the duty doc.)
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"Easily done if you're not concentrating"
Had exactly the same thought today - sat behind a car in a right turn lane at traffic lights. Lights went to green for "straight ahead", still red for "right turn". Car in front of me set off with cars in the "straight ahead" lanes to left of us - I put car in gear and nearly followed him but didn't as I realised what he had done. He, still thinking he was on "green" turned across front of cars setting off from lights in other direction, blocking them as he halted, realising his mistake - cue much flashing of lights/hooting of horns until he reversed out of way.
The thing that got me was the furious flashing, hooting, v-signs, screams of abuse from the couple of drivers blocked for a few seconds - I felt quite sorry for the guy - easy mistake(?), nobody bumped or injured etc - "easily done"
Phil
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There's a busy roundabout near us that used to flow very well till they spent a kings ransom and put lights round the thing.
When you leave the town you have a set to stop you entering the 'bout and another set 50 yards ahead for the next entrance which always go green about 1 minute before the first set...far too often someone will see the far set and away they go.
Unfortunately there are two lanes of traffic coming from the right and they just drive straight through the middle of 'em Keystone Cops style, comical if it wasn't so dangerous.
We always hang well back there, when the inevitable happens we hope to avoid the shrapnel.
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I was half asleep at the Shepherds Bush roundabout coming from Holland Park many years ago. Cars either side of me started to move and I instinctively let my foot off the brake and let the car move forward on creep - the moped in front of me stayed where he was and the nudge I gave him was enough to knock him backwards, dismount and drop his bike. I was preparing for an almighty rumble but he got back on his scooter without even making eye contact with me and took off.
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Your handle matches your description then?
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It was that water feature that mezmorized me, is it still there?
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is it still there?
Damned if I know. Perhaps not. But you stop noticing these things after a few times. And the whole place becomes more of a random mishmash by the day.
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It was that water feature that mezmorized me is it still there?
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Sure is and the roundabout is busier due to the Westfield Centre.
Going from Holland Park,as you turn North on the roundabout you are confronted by another distraction, a massive wide eye level moving flashing very bright display advertising ...anything. I think it should be removed.
The M41 that went up to the A40(M) is now the A3220 West Cross Route with an access roundabout above it. Things have changed in a big way out west.
uk.westfield.com/london/getting-there/car
The red pointer indicates the site ( the gray area the size of it). Zzoom to see the real size of it.
3390 car park spaces left out of 4500 left at 21:10
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"the roundabout is busier due to the Westfield Centre"
I don't think I'd recognize it if I drove there today. For many years I'd join the Westway then head North to Hampstead up Baker Street. I think that commute would give me a coronary now.
I do miss London though, best city to drive in when everyone knows what they're doing...
Edited by Webmaster on 19/11/2009 at 00:25
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I don't think I'd recognize it if I drove there today. For many years I'd join the Westway then head North to Hampstead up Baker Street.
>>I think that commute would give me a coronary now.
The roundabout has not changed in size or shape. The bridge at the exit to Sheperds Bush Green has gone. Lots of new buildings en route to the Westway ( 50mph plus Gatso) and sensible traffic lights now on the roundabout at the A40.
Edited by Webmaster on 19/11/2009 at 00:25
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The thing that got me was the furious flashing hooting v-signs screams of abuse from the couple of drivers blocked for a few seconds.
Quite a few people overreact like this, and some seem to go so far as to try to cause an accident just because they are "in the right". I wonder how many accidents these muppets cause.
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A couple of times, I've nearly jumped a red light 'cos I've got it into my subconcious that the green on the crossing 50 yds further on is for me.
Always had the good fortune to realise in time......thank heavens.
Coming home from the chippy, I entered a road with parked cars on both sides. It was dark and the road was narrow. I pulled as far over left as I could to let a Granada through who was obviously intent on not slowing down. He just scraped down the side of my old Renault 5 and disappeared into the night. I was stationary at the time and on 3rd party. The car went to it's grave a couple of years later, still proudly displaying it's wounds.
Ted
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Funny, I must go through that roundabout in various directions several times a year anyway, and I simply couldn't remember whether the water thingy was still there. It's in my immediate area but not on a frequent route. Shepherd's Bush has been a traffic nightmare eastbound for ages and I have learned to go round it when possible.
Driving of course is bad for one's general peripheral observation. One tends to be focused on a narrow range of things, mostly on the road. You see much more and take it in better when on foot.
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