Broken-down First Great Western rail replacement bus hit by lorry

[whole diary]

[a-driver]

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-oxfordshire-30474952

Hopefully those seriously injured make a quick and full recovery   

[ChrisB]

The bus replacement for the 0030 OXF^» (Oxford - next trains)-DID^» (Didcot Parkway - next trains) rear-ended by a DHL lorry....while it was stationery.

I hope the lorry driver loses his licence.

http://www.witneygazette.co.uk/news/11666461.Serious_collision_involving_a_lorry_and_bus_at_Drayton_closes_A34/?ref=rss

[a-driver]

The bus replacement for the 0030 OXF^» (Oxford - next trains)-DID^» (Didcot Parkway - next trains) rear-ended by a DHL lorry....while it was stationery.

I hope the lorry driver loses his licence.

http://www.witneygazette.co.uk/news/11666461.Serious_collision_involving_a_lorry_and_bus_at_Drayton_closes_A34/?ref=rss

To be fair to the lorry driver, its a bit early to point the finger of blame.  Passengers on the bus report the bus lost power.  If this affected the rear lights then its possible the lorry driver had little or no sighting of the bus.  Nothing the driver could have done.

[ChrisB]

Except drive at a speed allowing him to stop in time - the regular advice for all drivers.

[a-driver]

Except drive at a speed allowing him to stop in time - the regular advice for all drivers.

But what speed would that be on a dark unlit road for a 40t HGV... or even a car?  We don't know the road layout or road conditions at the time.  I'm sure the police will be looking at the drivers tachograph to determine if speed was an issue. 

[ChrisB]

Indeed, I'm sure they will.

A pretty straight, no sharp corners, dual lane dual carriageway. No sign in the photos of the lorry even trying to take avoiding action, with it stationary beyond the bus which has simply been tail-ended & shunted off the road.

[chrisr_75]

Except drive at a speed allowing him to stop in time - the regular advice for all drivers.

The whole point of dual carriageways & motorways is that you don't have to expect stationary vehicles, pedestrians, farm animals, vehicles turning etc., which is why there is a raised speed limit and in some cases restrictions on what vehicles are permitted on these roads.

[a-driver]

Indeed, I'm sure they will.

A pretty straight, no sharp corners, dual lane dual carriageway. No sign in the photos of the lorry even trying to take avoiding action, with it stationary beyond the bus which has simply been tail-ended & shunted off the road.

Ah like I said, I'm not familiar with the road.  The bus hasn't taken a full rear end impact though, its took an impact to the rear corner which I think looks like the driver tried to take avoiding action.  The actual rear structure of the bus isn't that deformed. 

[ChrisB]

More photos on the Witney Gazette page link above



Seems to show a collision point towards one corner, I agree.

But the damage to the cab of the lorry can be seen is this shot, indicating a collision at some speed, with the cab on the verge, not in the middle of the road (which you would expect if catching the bus a glancing blow)

[IanL]

Dual carriageway but no hard shoulder, the A34 takes motorway levels of traffic and speeds but is only dual carriageway, minimal central reservation and at this point no hard shoulder. If the bus pulled onto the verge it would still be at least partially on the inner carriageway.

[didcotdean]

The Newsquest article referred to above has been updated further in the last few minutes, with some personal experiences. The coach coasted to a halt without power and some people had got out for a smoke from this and 'got clipped'.

According to BBC^» (British Broadcasting Corporation - home page) Oxford the coach now has been recovered and that of the lorry is in progress. Projected time for the road to reopen is now 2pm. Traffic queues down to an hour.

[Oxonhutch]

A very common event unfortunately and even more so where there is no hard shoulder.  It can be difficult with tail lights at night to tell whether they are moving or stationary, and traffic has a tendency to follow the lights in front.  Our accident prevention training many years ago told us to extinguish our tail lights quickly when stopped on a hard shoulder to stop people rear-ending you - thinking you were simply the vehicle in front.  That and evacuate the vehicle immediately.

[ChrisB]

I was surprised that the driver didn't (try &) clear the coach having stopped on the carriageway. Would guess that might become a neccesary requirement going forward?

[didcotdean]

Road has reopened, albeit one lane only for the time being.

Although it is advisable to get out of the coach it seems those that did were not situated far away enough to avoid injury.

[onthecushions]

Expect more of the same with the coming "smart" motorways planned by DfT^» (Department for Transport - about), where the hard shoulder is used for traffic.

Doesn't it make us all appreciate those red "home" signals, track circuits, axle counters and absolute block working.

OTC