Worst thing youve seen on a Motorway?

[tigerbear]

were do I start. being and ambo worker I see all sorts of things including.
* multi vehicle RTA (4 fatalities, 1 on site amputation by the doctor, 2 amputations caused by the accident, 3 suspect spinal injuries(2 confirmed at the hospital) 3rd degree burns,and last but not least 1 sucking chest wound)
*RAC man drag along the hard shoulder for about 1/2 mile
* caravan detaching from car and passing me in lane 3 at a higher speed than me(me doin 90 on blues)

as well as numerous other things
ohhhh the joys of being a paramedic

[supraman2954]

This Friday afternoon, 16:00, M3 southbound, 100m to J4 exit. All lanes doing about 20MPH.

White van in front of me tailgating another white van, all of us in leftmost lane. Van in front of me decides to gun it and undertake van in front of him - in the emergency lane. Bad enough, except an AA van was stationary in emergency lane aiding a broken down motorist, van missed by only a few meters.

The bit that really frazzles me was that the offending van pulled off to the slip road not 10 seconds later. The driver saved less than 10 seconds, yet nearly cost 2 lives. I was too shocked to think of noting the plate.

I saw the results two other accidents that day

>> Edited by supraman2954 on Saturday 29th May 22:20

[Pulsatingstar]

On the way to JAE @ Billing last year the RX7 convoy was amazed to see a car heading towards us down the hard shoulder! Couldnt work out how that was managed, think someone took an entrance to the services as an exit.

[nickwilcock]

On our way back from the aerodrome to the hotel in Riyadh during Gulf War One after another mission against Uncle Saddam, whilst doing about 80 mph on an otherwise empty 3-lane motorway we came across someone who had stopped in the fast lane in order to do that ritual howling at Mecca thing.... There he was out on his prayer mat quite oblivious of the traffic around him!

I guess someone Up There (pbuh, as they say) was on his side that day!

>> Edited by nickwilcock on Saturday 29th May 21:53

[lanciachris]

Was travelling with parents once when i was young and a coach next to us had a wheel come off. It shot across our front missing by a small amount and hit the car behind. The coach ground to a halt on the hard shoulder, trailing sparks.

[philthy]

Watching a volvo change lane without checking his mirrors on the M25, clipping an undertaking biker dumpimg him off his bike, then watching two cars go right over him in the third lane............nasty !!!. I like to think he didn't feel the second one.

or watching a nearside rear wheel come loose from a tipper truck, overtake the truck, run up the bank then back down, clip the central reservation and take off god knows how high, then land on the bonnet of an oncoming derby and joan.....jesus!!!!! 2 feet, and they would have had to cut the roof off to get them out.
Philthy

[ledaig]

Worst thing seen on a motorway ? My VW beetle filling with smoke just after I'd moved into lane 2 to let someone on from a slip - he thought I was taking the p**s by slowing down till he looked across and saw me coughing through the fog .

Worst thing on a dual carriageway (is this allowed guv?), when I was commuting on a bike I would often come across cars broken down at the Black Cat roundabout (A1 Bed's/Camb's border), due to the fact that tailing traffic quickly reached the sharp 's' bends about 1/2 mile back leading to a potentially nasty situation I would regularly park the bike at the garage on the other side of the roundabout and make my way back to help push the car clear (other road users were always helpful by lending a hand/making space/rolling buffer etc). Imagine my surprise and horror to knock on a misted drivers window to have it opened by a young lad about 8 years old, his mum had left the car in the outside lane, with at that point cars flying past, to go and get help (walking) from a village 2 miles away. She had actually left four young children in the car awaiting her return to recover it. With nothing I could do (what can you do with kids in that situation???), I could only return to the garage and call the fed's.

[towman]

Seen lots of mangled remains (vehicular and human). But what makes me shudder is seeing people change offside wheels on the hard shoulder with their *ss 2 inches from lane 1. If it happens to you - keep going. If you wreck the wheel/tyre, so what. Iam sure there is a PHer out there who has hard shoulder accident stats. Incidently, providing it`s safe to do so, I always move to lane 2 when passing vehicle on hard shoulder esp for BiB, recovery, highways agency etc. I believe this is a legal requirement in parts of the US and Europe - it would be nice to see it introduced here.

towman

[gh0st]

Worst thing I have seen on the motorway?

A Fiat Multipla




I actualy helped in crash on the M4 a while ago. A woman in a Vectra in the outside lane "drifted off" at the wheel and clipped the central barrier.

Spun the car and maraculously didnt hit anyone.

I was the only person that pulled onto the hard shoulder to offer assitance apart from an off duty amulance driver.

Thanks UK Drivers - you really are the best of the best when it comes of assitance and compassion

[Balmoral Green]

On Saturday I was on the M3, there was a lady in a new Corsa in lane 3 doing about 55mph, everyone was giving her the main beam and a toot, but she wouldnt move, even the numpties were angry with her and gesturing at her, everyone, but everyone was undertaking. Traffic was actually very light, so some of the undertaking was at high speed. First I went the 'drop well back, right turn signal on, lights on, and wait patiently' routine, no luck. So I then tried the 'aggressive' route, I came up behind her, and was pretty determined to make her move over, main beam, horn jammed on, 2mm off her rear bumper, checking my N'S mirror for lane 1 & 2 clear for her to move over, it was, and she wouldnt. As this went on all traffic kept undertaking and she got gestures from open windows, as she was the slowest car on the motorway and in lane 3 too, this went on for miles. Then there was a bizarre moment when we had three vehicles all side by side in all three lanes actually holding back and staying level with each other right down to about 45 mph for her to move over, all main beaming her, still she stayed in lane 3.

Then I noticed that the car had a 'Europcar' logo on the tailgate, and that the very tiny lady driving was of Far Eastern origin, and we werent that far from the airports either. Maybe, just maybe, she's foreign, and out of her depth on a foreign motorway too, and doesnt know what to do.

Anyway, eventually I just undertook her too, and no sooner had I done so than a black Range Rover that had been travelling behind all of this for some miles came up fast behind her and just didnt stop, he gave her such an almighty nudge that her car catapulted forward a little with it.

You have never seen anyone dart for lane 1 so quick.

I dont condone what this guy did (actually, I have to admit, I do a little) but it was easily the most dangerous thing I have seen in a long time, glad it was in my rear view mirror and the road was empty, she could have ended up spinning the car.

[BliarOut]

I don't condone it, but boy did she deserve that. Only wish I could have seen it

[Chris Type R]

M25, two ladders fallen off onto the middle lane.

Not motorway - dual carriage way, lorry decides without checking mirror to do impromtu u-turn due to being lost through emergency gap in central reservation. A sharp tug from the driver had the lorry move from lane one to blocking lane two withing a very short time-frame. TGF good brakes.

[SGirl]

Once joined the M54 on a dark, foggy evening to see half a dozen young lads on pedal bikes - no lights, of course - pootling up the hard shoulder...

[77-84]

If dual carriageways count then I have a shocking yarn. It happened when I was but a young nipper heading to an airshow in Fairford in Glos. Traffic got heavy and eventually ground to a complete halt. Being young and impatient we soon started playing games in the back, seeing as there appeared to be no prospect of movement.

Suddenly, a car two or three ahead lurched off the tarmac and onto the flat grass verge by the side of the road, and sped off into the distance. Soon traffic began to move again, and, sure as day 200 yards up the road was 'mr impatient', stranded on the verge with his right indicator on, his passage blocked by an enormous road sign. Did anybody let him back in? Did they hell!

[streaky]

Chris Type R said:

... lorry decides without checking mirror to do impromtu u-turn due to being lost through emergency gap in central reservation.

I've often thought those gaps were big enough to lose a lorry in - Streaky

[zumbruk]

A1(M) Northbound, stationary in traffic. Guy in a red Escort RS Turbo works his way from Lane 3 to Lane 1. Pulls onto hard shoulder, then drives up to next *on* ramp (we're passed the exit). Then he *reverses* down the *on* ramp.

Sadly, he made it safely onto the roundabout and drives off into the night. Was there a "safety" camera? Don't make me laugh until I piss myself, eh?

[zumbruk]

Sudden snowstorm on Pennsylvania Thruway. I decide to pull off at the next exit. Off-ramp is blocked, so people are doing three-point turns and driving back up to the freeway in the wrong direction, in 3" of snow with zero grip - including a bloody *school* *bus*!!!

[munta]

Driving down the M25 clockwise towards the M11 in my Scoobie. I started overtaking an old car doing 50 in the middle lane and me at around 70. As I over took he veared in front of my car about 5 foot in front of me. Had to brake hard before accelerating out of the way of him and other cars. Turns out that the guys axle had snapped!!!

Luckyly no one hurt but if it had been rush hour?

[Bar_steward]

we were on the way to a game of rugby on the M6 and someone many miles up the road decied to top themselves off a road bridge (WTF f:cencored:g tw@!!)

anyway traffic was going nowhere and girls in back were despreate for the toilet so the go into the adjacent field. on the way back they nearly get run over by an absolute :cencored: flying up the hard shoulder. i blow my lid and shout many expleatives at the driver, who then gets out of his car to start a fight. unlucky for him there quite a few rugby players in near by cars and as soon as he realised he turned tail and carried on down the shoulder - with the rest of his family in the car! nice guy i'm guessing!!

[D_Mike]

On the M1 some time last year, southbound. On the hard shoulder of the opposite carriageway is a police volvo reversing fast enough to be keeping up with us (about 50mph i think!). I didn't realise reverse gears were that long. Incidentally, if any policeman are reading this is this actually a) legal for a policeman or b) a very good idea?.