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Police: Man gets out of car after minor collision on the turnpike, is promptly hit and killed by a third car
By adamg on Sat, 03/28/2015 - 5:47pm
State Police report a driver's decision to get out of his car to exchange papers after a minor collision on I-90 westbound in Brighton last night proved fatal:
Preliminary information collected in the investigation by Trooper John Adams indicates that a minor collision occurred between a 2003 Mercury Grand Marquis and a 1998 Honda Accord. Following that initial collision, the two drivers parked their vehicles in the right, active travel lane to exchange paperwork. The driver of the Honda, 81-year-old Arkloo Wong of Watertown, exited his vehicle, which was the rear-most of the two, and positioned himself behind it. Around this time, a 2010 Volkswagen rear-ended the Honda, striking Wong in the process. Wong was pronounced dead at the scene.
State Police say the driver of the Volkswagen was taken to the hospital; the driver of the first car was uninjured.
The crash remains under investigation; no charges have been filed.
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Comments
Please people, move on to the
Please people, move on to the next emergency pull off when there is no breakdown lane. Even a breakdown lane can be too narrow sometimes, so make sure there is a shoulder too!
This is when you're able to, just like in the situation above. :( Avoid turning a minor accident into a tragedy.
Horrible and all too common
Horrible and all too common on our substandard highways without breakdown lanes.
Doesn't help
When drivers are doing anything but paying attention to what is happening in front of them.
Is there any standard advice for such situations? Remember that even a minor incident can render a car undrivable (deployed airbags, etc.).
If you can't move your car,
If you can't move your car, the standard advice is to not exit the vehicle. It's the only thing protecting you, and it's far more visible, w/ blinkers. Call the staties, and they will come block your car with their lights and/or push you off the highway or to the emergency turn off.
Even if you pull off onto a shoulder, the advice given is stay far back of your car. Due to stuff like this:
If it's possible to do safely
If it's possible to do safely, I might try to get out of the car and hop over the guardrail.
Vision Zero
Widen highways with generous breakdown lanes.
Don't stop in the travel lane
It won't matter if the breakdown lane is 100ft wide if drivers stop in the travel lane. Today's accident was tragic and the lesson to learn is to pull all the way over and ideally park on the grass. If you do need to leave car do so from the side which isn't facing traffic.
AND if you are driving, PAY ATTENTION. Like most auto accidents this would could have likely been avoided if the driver was driving safely and paying full attention to the road and any unexpected situations. Far too many people zone out on the highway which is perhaps how the first fender-bender happened.
cheaper and easier idea
convert a travel lane into a breakdown lane where needed
if the state really cared about safety, they could do this right away
but they don't
There's no breakdown lane on
There's no breakdown lane on the Masspike in Allston because with the limited space and high volume of traffic, an extra travel lane is more valuable than an infrequently-used breakdown lane.
Vision Zero not cost based
Economics used to be employed when making decisions, such as the cost of likely saving a life, or the cost to productivity of traffic congestion or a lower speed limit.
Vision Zero seems to mandate saving lives no matter the cost, so practical considerations no longer apply.
when a breakdown lane is
when a breakdown lane is needed, it's needed badly
caring about safety means making tough choices sometimes
you and the state have made a choice
more speed, more volume, more cars
less safety
own it
How about
Expect the unexpected, pay attention, or turn in your license and get off the road.
Yes, you, Mr. "I can't seeeee anythinnngg".
When somebody's stopped in an
When somebody's stopped in an active travel lane on a curvy highway, it's actually reasonable not to blame the driver who ran into them.
Not the way it works
This is considered an "at fault" in most places, as you are expected to drive at speeds which permit you to at least brake. The term is "basic rule violation".
Curvy highway means drive slower and pay more attention to things such as your closing speed on other vehicles.
Interstate standards take into account "curvy highway", btw. This was on an interstate highway.
So bicyclists at fault for dooring?
They are going too fast and too close to parked cars and not looking for occupants in them?
OK, that would then be consistent.
Bzzzzzt!
The person holding the door has control of the situation. That's why Cambridge and other municipalities have long held the door opener accountable, including when the door is hit by a driver. A stopped car in the lane isn't a "sudden" occurrence in the way that an accident happening in front of you or an opening door is.
Get better arguments or just gtfa.
Actually, this is an awesome reason to eliminate all street parking, because it is dangerous. Was that your motivation?
MA state law also holds the
MA state law also holds the door opener accountable
It is all too common in this
It is all too common in this state, I really think the State should start preventative measures like airing brief commercials on this matter, what will it cost them , peanuts.
Oops, duplicate post somehow
n/t