awareness courses for bell ends.

anotherbaldrick

The offending motorists who indulged in the UK's largest ever crunch fest on the Sheppey Bridge in fog last September ( 150 cars involved , 200 injured, road closed two days ) have all been awarded a course on road awareness. Perhaps they should also undergo mental examination.
Evidently is the longest ever collision time wise, witnesses attest to the sound extending over 10 minutes as the late arrivals inserted themselves into the carnage.


http://www.telegraph.co.uk/motoring/10583739/Dozens-of-motorists-offered-driving-course-after-150-car-pile-up.html

Weird_Nev

And I'm quite sure that if you were on that road in those conditions, you would have been able to stop in time?

Not that it would have mattered, since the car behind would have ploughed into you and punched you into the fracas anyway.

anotherbaldrick

Weird_Nev wrote: »

And I'm quite sure that if you were on that road in those conditions, you would have been able to stop in time?

Not that it would have mattered, since the car behind would have ploughed into you and punched you into the fracas anyway.

I doubt that the drivers who were tail ended only will be the ones getting the awareness courses. And yes, I have the sense to drive at a speed and distance I can see ahead of me to be clear. YOU ?

Aretnap

While it doesn't excuse them entirely, the fact that at least 32 drivers managed to plough into the back of someone else in the space of a few minutes does rather suggest that their driving fell into the normal range of stupidity (for Kent at least) rather than being exceptionally stupid. Awareness courses seem a fair enough way of dealing with it.

AirCooledHeaven

Whatever you think of their driving abilities and general intelligence, the fact remains that an awareness course is more likely to have a positive affect on their future road behaviour than points and a fine. And while that may not be sufficient 'punishment' for your liking, it may mean that one of them is less likely to run into you in the future...

londonTiger

what about if you were in the middle. You managed to brake in time and avoid hitting the pile up because you kept a good distance but the car behind you hit you and caused you to move forward into the pile up?

Any way to contest that or are you guilty until you can provie yourself innocent?

londonTiger

btw, during fog is the road less slippery or more slippery than if it was raining?

Rain runs down and will work it's way into the cracks. Fog has a tendency to stick to the surface so it won't run down as much.

Aretnap

londonTiger wrote: »

what about if you were in the middle. You managed to brake in time and avoid hitting the pile up because you kept a good distance but the car behind you hit you and caused you to move forward into the pile up?

Any way to contest that or are you guilty until you can provie yourself innocent?

It would be for the prosecution to prove you were guilty of careless driving. In practice if you hit a stationary object that's sufficient evidence for the court to conclude that you were driving carelessly unless you can offer an alternative explanation. The large dent in the back of your car where you were hit from behind coupled with the numerous witnesses would be good evidence to support your alternative explaination (ie that you were shunted into the car in front).

AdrianC

londonTiger wrote: »

btw, during fog is the road less slippery or more slippery than if it was raining?

Rain runs down and will work it's way into the cracks. Fog has a tendency to stick to the surface so it won't run down as much.

What, exactly, do you think "fog" is?

anotherbaldrick

What, exactly, do you think "fog" is?

Remember this is Sheppey fog we are talking about , a serious mixture of sheep [EMAIL="f@rt"]f@rt[/EMAIL] and steelworks fallout (? is steelworks still operating ) Some nice photographs of it before it evaporated


http://uk.news.yahoo.com/lightbox/more-than-100-cars-involved-in-pile-up-on-sheppey-bridge-1378371750-slideshow/fog-at-the-sheppey-bridge-in-kent-twitter-joe-ford-photo-1378371580121.html