Massive Pile Up In Fort Worth

[Pohemi]

wonder if it was black ice, that can be tricky

i had to drive 30 miles at 10-20 MPH on black ice once to get to class

%75 of the people didn't come and a couple of them went off the road trying to get there

I had to re-read this to make sure it wasn't one of those stupid math story problems

 

[IronWing]

I live about 5 miles away from where this happened.

That was a toll road with cement barriers on both side sides so they had no other place to go. What surprises me is how fast those semis were going. Dont you have any common sense? Dont you see the mass of brake lights in front of you? Granted, people drive faster on toll roads, but ...wow.

Anyway, TxDOT uses brine to treat the roads. You can see the mini white lines all over that look like a pin-stripe suit in the middle of the road.



^ You can see, there was really no way to avoid this except to drive slowly....and hope no one plows into you.

View attachment 39566

Since they pulled the FJ out of the pile, I think that answers my question about survivors. Note to self: don't get rear ended by a semi.

 

[brianmanahan]

Note to self: don't get rear ended by a semi.

rules to live by

 

[FelixDeCat]

Extended live crash video:

 

[Iron Woode]

here is one from Jan 2017 on the 401 near Toronto:

 

[spacejamz]

wonder if it was black ice, that can be tricky

i had to drive 30 miles at 10-20 MPH on black ice once to get to class

%75 of the people didn't come and a couple of them went off the road trying to get there

it was black ice....i read that was it was 1/4" thick layer of it...

 

[sandorski]

That moment when you see someone die.

Electronic signage with adaptable speed limits would be useful under these conditions.

 

[Red Squirrel]

Holy crap these people are FLYING. Should not be driving that fast when it's that slippery nor driving so close to others. Sucks that people had to die and get injured because of this.

 

[Red Squirrel]

So...you're saying that other than the couple who crashed...75% of your class was smarter than you? Gotcha.

Assuming college/uni, they don't usually have snow days. You're expected to be there, just like work. I still remember asking about this durring college orientation if there are snow days, and basically got laughed at by the presenter (don't recall if it was dean or another person). "no you're an adult now, you're expected to class no matter what the weather is like" or something along those lines.

 

[purbeast0]

uh, is every single trucker on that road on fricking meth, jacking off to porn and not watching the road in an ice storm? It looked like no one was stopping, skidding or anything, just plowing into stopped cars at full speed, that they certainly could have seen well in advance. what the hell. Was it that foggy with such poor visibility? ....even so, wtf is driving at top speed in those conditions.

Couple of transport business probably going to get sued out of existence for that nonsense.

If you're going 70mph and hit ice, you are going to keep going 70mph regardless of slamming the brakes on or not, until gravity/friction changes that.

 

[shortylickens]

4x4 is just added weight when it comes to braking.

2WD and AWD cars both brake on 4 wheels.

Many people with SUVs seem to not get that and do stupid shit.

Dumb people brake on the snow.

Smart people downshift.

 

[zinfamous]

If you're going 70mph and hit ice, you are going to keep going 70mph regardless of slamming the brakes on or not, until gravity/friction changes that.

right. At the time of that post, I didn't realize that it was an overpass ice situation. It must have just happened, too, when that video was rolling, because I'm still surprised at those trucks, with their ability to see pretty far ahead, driving at speed towards a pile of obviously stopped cars. ...it just didn't look and sound like they had been braking at any time before the crash(es). Ice or not, I still don't understand driving at any speed like that when you have a pile of red lights in front of you.

Maybe visibility was worse than it appears to be?

 

[shortylickens]

right. At the time of that post, I didn't realize that it was an overpass ice situation. It must have just happened, too, when that video was rolling, because I'm still surprised at those trucks, with their ability to see pretty far ahead, driving at speed towards a pile of obviously stopped cars. ...it just didn't look and sound like they had been braking at any time before the crash(es). Ice or not, I still don't understand driving at any speed like that when you have a pile of red lights in front of you.

Maybe visibility was worse than it appears to be?

which is why you're supposed to drive SLOWER and keep more distance from the guy in front of you.
too many people dont know that even though its stated repeatedly in every drivers ed.

I think there should be mandatory training every 10 years after you get your license. this shit is tiresome.

 

[purbeast0]

right. At the time of that post, I didn't realize that it was an overpass ice situation. It must have just happened, too, when that video was rolling, because I'm still surprised at those trucks, with their ability to see pretty far ahead, driving at speed towards a pile of obviously stopped cars. ...it just didn't look and sound like they had been braking at any time before the crash(es). Ice or not, I still don't understand driving at any speed like that when you have a pile of red lights in front of you.

Maybe visibility was worse than it appears to be?

I don't think you are going to "hear" any braking when on ice, not like any screeching since there is virtually no friction. I'd guess too visibility was worse than it seemed, and/or it was frozen from a while back and based on those images, it was like a bowling alley where there was nowhere to go.

 

[Brainonska511]

Maybe visibility was worse than it appears to be?

Well, that would just be another reason to slow down.

 

[Torn Mind]

I wouldn't be surprised truckers are speeding.

The pay sucks(raw numbers look very good though) and they've been on the roads doing the same thing for years.

 

[repoman0]

Dumb people brake on the snow.

Smart people downshift.

That ... is just not true

which is why you're supposed to drive SLOWER and keep more distance from the guy in front of you.
too many people dont know that even though its stated repeatedly in every drivers ed.

I think there should be mandatory training every 10 years after you get your license. this shit is tiresome.

This is correct on the other hand

 

[Torn Mind]

which is why you're supposed to drive SLOWER and keep more distance from the guy in front of you.
too many people dont know that even though its stated repeatedly in every drivers ed.

I think there should be mandatory training every 10 years after you get your license. this shit is tiresome.

The paradox is that stricter adherence to rules and disciplined training allows for much faster travel speeds, which is what happens in Europe.

U.S culture's love for individual independence(every man for himself and his gain) and lax standards ironically bogs the "hasty ones" down.

 

[rh71]

Exactly, and very few people bother with winter or snow tires, even up here in New England. I laugh at stuck AWD SUVs when I drive by in a RWD car with proper limited slip diff and snow tires. Though usually I just avoid going out because people can’t be trusted in the snow and I don’t want them to wreck my car.

I'm in downstate NY and the winters aren't so terrible that they would require winter tires. I keep all-seasons on year round and know my limits. My SUV's rears are also 315mm wide so it's basically like a sled. I only go out when necessary and when I do, I'm not a flipping idiot trying to outpace anyone. You're absolutely right about others who can't be trusted.

 

[jmagg]

On black ice there is only one option, coast straight until off black ice. Hopefully uninterrupted.

 

[local]

Updates, it was a mile long or so patch of black ice on an elevated roadway. The fire department had to use their own sand just to get to the site. The road leading to this appears to have been clear which includes a lot of elevated roadway, there was just suddenly ice.

It's easy to say they were driving too fast if they were on ice. The problem with that is they were not on ice until they were. Before they hit that ice patch and the first vehicle lost control they were on clear dry road where you drive 80 or you are the hazard. Once on the ice there was nothing that could be done you were going into the pile.

Investigations are being call for against the company that was supposed to treat the road.

 

[Red Squirrel]

You can somewhat steer on ice. Somewhat being keyword. If you're not going too fast you can often even apply a bit of gas to change course. Just don't slam the brakes, only threshold brake. If wheels stop turning you're probably not going anywhere but straight. Black ice IS tricky though, as it does not look as sliperry as it is. In these cold temps your tires are also harder and may grip less. Personally I just try to stay off the highway when the conditions are bad. But I guess if you have work or school etc and it's part of your route you kind of have no choice.

 

[s0me0nesmind1]

You can somewhat steer on ice. Somewhat being keyword. If you're not going too fast you can often even apply a bit of gas to change course. Just don't slam the brakes, only threshold brake. If wheels stop turning you're probably not going anywhere but straight. Black ice IS tricky though, as it does not look as sliperry as it is. In these cold temps your tires are also harder and may grip less. Personally I just try to stay off the highway when the conditions are bad. But I guess if you have work or school etc and it's part of your route you kind of have no choice.

I've driven in pure ice/snow via rental car when traveling for work. Didn't seem that difficult. don't gas too much, don't steer too ridiculous, etc...

But yeah, if you start to spin out my understanding is you should turn the wheel WITH the car, in order to try to better gain control instead of attempting to steer against it.

 

[repoman0]

But yeah, if you start to spin out my understanding is you should turn the wheel WITH the car, in order to try to better gain control instead of attempting to steer against it.

Don’t do that. If you’re truly spinning out, there’s nothing even the best driver can do and you are fucked until you stop or crash. Brakes to the floor and hope for the best. With a lot of practice, you can catch yourself if just starting to go sideways by taking your foot off the throttle for a little forward weight transfer and counter steering. Then slowly return to center as the car straightens out. Most people will just need to hope traction control catches them because it takes real practice to do it right and not make it worse.

 

[Svnla]

Just saw on the news that Texas DOT is using a mixture of salt water (saw the truck with the spraying liquid) and not just pure salt powder.