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Singapore Reckless Drivers Thread VII


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19 minutes ago, Didu said:

So the taxi uncle basically lost consciousness when reaching the traffic light. So how did the vehicle swerve left then make a right turn?

 

There was a front passenger who panicked and took over control of the steering wheel. The swerving was by the passenger himself/herself

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10 hours ago, Ceecookie said:

There was a front passenger who panicked and took over control of the steering wheel. The swerving was by the passenger himself/herself

Meaning to say from that point in onward, the car is partially controlled by front passenger?  So under such "joined effort", the court ruled the death of the pedestrian as a "misadventure"? OMG

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1 hour ago, Didu said:

Meaning to say from that point in onward, the car is partially controlled by front passenger?  So under such "joined effort", the court ruled the death of the pedestrian as a "misadventure"? OMG

It may not be the best answer to some, but do you want to charge the passenger? 

My condolences to the lady.. but 

This brings closure to an unfortunate incident. No one wanted this to happen. Some may say, you can get a top legal eagle to sue the pants off the taxi driver and his passenger, but I really hope we avoid the litigation culture so prevalent in the West. 

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1 hour ago, Didu said:

Meaning to say from that point in onward, the car is partially controlled by front passenger?  So under such "joined effort", the court ruled the death of the pedestrian as a "misadventure"? OMG

First, the front seat passenger may not have a licence and know how to steer a car. 

2. It happened in a split second, not many people have superpower reaction and calm of the mind to safely steer the car. 

3. In the passenger seat, one will need to reach across and likely get pulled back by the tightened seat belt to even grab the steering wheel. 

Too many variables. Really an unfortunate misadventure. 

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I know it's easier to look at things from hindsight, but I'm wondering how would I react if caught in the same situation as the front passenger? The front passenger probably had only about 1 sec reaction time when he discovered the driver is no longer in control of a moving vehicle.

A. Pull the handbrake and shout "Brace for Impact!!"😖

B. Push the transmission all the way forward to Park, and shout "Brace for Impact!!"

C. Turn the steering wheel like how it was done, then execute a U-turn rather than a right hand turn.🙄

-Note for C option, I may kill someone if a motorbike just happens to be next to the car.😱

How would you react?

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22 minutes ago, Didu said:

I know it's easier to look at things from hindsight, but I'm wondering how would I react if caught in the same situation as the front passenger? The front passenger probably had only about 1 sec reaction time when he discovered the driver is no longer in control of a moving vehicle.

A. Pull the handbrake and shout "Brace for Impact!!"😖

B. Push the transmission all the way forward to Park, and shout "Brace for Impact!!"

C. Turn the steering wheel like how it was done, then execute a U-turn rather than a right hand turn.🙄

-Note for C option, I may kill someone if a motorbike just happens to be next to the car.😱

How would you react?

Aim for the traffic light or lamppost

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1 hour ago, Didu said:

I know it's easier to look at things from hindsight, but I'm wondering how would I react if caught in the same situation as the front passenger? The front passenger probably had only about 1 sec reaction time when he discovered the driver is no longer in control of a moving vehicle.

A. Pull the handbrake and shout "Brace for Impact!!"😖

     Some car have foot brake, while new cars have electronic parking brake. In such a case, this option is out.

B. Push the transmission all the way forward to Park, and shout "Brace for Impact!!"

C. Turn the steering wheel like how it was done, then execute a U-turn rather than a right hand turn.🙄

-Note for C option, I may kill someone if a motorbike just happens to be next to the car.😱

     It was reported that the passenger steered it to avoid colliding into a vehicle.

How would you react?

 

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1 hour ago, Didu said:

I know it's easier to look at things from hindsight, but I'm wondering how would I react if caught in the same situation as the front passenger? The front passenger probably had only about 1 sec reaction time when he discovered the driver is no longer in control of a moving vehicle.

A. Pull the handbrake and shout "Brace for Impact!!"😖

B. Push the transmission all the way forward to Park, and shout "Brace for Impact!!"

C. Turn the steering wheel like how it was done, then execute a U-turn rather than a right hand turn.🙄

-Note for C option, I may kill someone if a motorbike just happens to be next to the car.😱

How would you react?

Cant think of so many loh...Maybe at most aim handbrake lor.

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Not many folks have the skills and presence of mind to react in such a short time. Fighter pilots maybe..

Scully had 37 seconds to decide on where to ditch the plane. That's at the top level. Some sleepy Singaporean in a taxi (who may not even know how to drive)? Given about 5-10 seconds to decide, come on... all this could have been talk... give them a break la..

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On 9/21/2019 at 12:04 PM, Didu said:

I know it's easier to look at things from hindsight, but I'm wondering how would I react if caught in the same situation as the front passenger? The front passenger probably had only about 1 sec reaction time when he discovered the driver is no longer in control of a moving vehicle.

A. Pull the handbrake and shout "Brace for Impact!!"😖

B. Push the transmission all the way forward to Park, and shout "Brace for Impact!!"

C. Turn the steering wheel like how it was done, then execute a U-turn rather than a right hand turn.🙄

-Note for C option, I may kill someone if a motorbike just happens to be next to the car.😱

How would you react?

I have real life experience about 10 years ago (on lane 1 of an expressway). I am in the front passenger seat, and the 1st thing I did was to reach for the steering wheel. Fortunately, the driver's foot was on the brake and that allows me to pull to the road shoulder without hitting other vehicles. The car was a JDM Honda, with electronic handbrake at the driver side foot well, so I am not able to activate it.

Pushing the gear to 'P' would not have worked as it can't get pass 'R' when the car is traveling at above certain speed (suppose to be a safety measure to prevent accidental engagement of reverse gear while on the move).

Trust me, you have no time to think, but just react instinctively. In the nutshell, everything are situational, and no amount of theory could have help, IMO.

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1 hour ago, therock said:

Not many folks have the skills and presence of mind to react in such a short time. Fighter pilots maybe..

Scully had 37 seconds to decide on where to ditch the plane. That's at the top level. Some sleepy Singaporean in a taxi (who may not even know how to drive)? Given about 5-10 seconds to decide, come on... all this could have been talk... give them a break la..

If  everyone in the car has seat belts on, maybe hitting the car in front and stopping there may result in no one dying.

D. Do nothing

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On 9/21/2019 at 3:28 PM, Carbon82 said:

I have real life experience about 10 years ago (on lane 1 of an expressway). I am in the front passenger seat, and the 1st thing I did was to reach for the steering wheel. Fortunately, the driver's foot was on the brake and that allows me to pull to the road shoulder without hitting other vehicles. The car was a JDM Honda, with electronic handbrake at the driver side foot well, so I am not able to activate it.

Pushing the gear to 'P' would not have worked as it can't get pass 'R' when the car is traveling at above certain speed (suppose to be a safety measure to prevent accidental engagement of reverse gear while on the move).

Trust me, you have no time to think, but just react instinctively. In the nutshell, everything are situational, and no amount of theory could have help, IMO.

Thanks for sharing about the transmission. I also had an experience many years ago unintentionally shifted from D to R. The engine immediately stopped. I probably did some damage to the trans box.

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https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/transport/i-prefer-death-than-living-with-the-memories-says-taxi-driver-who-caused-fatal

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'I prefer death over living with the memories,' says taxi driver who caused fatal accident after passing out

 

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SINGAPORE - Taxi driver How Yuen Fah felt a sharp pain in his right abdomen and struggled to keep his eyes open while driving along Queensway during peak hours one evening.

By the time Mr How, then 72, signalled to turn right at the Queensway traffic junction on March 22, he had blacked out.

When he woke up in the hospital, he found out that he had a tumour in his liver which suddenly ruptured, causing him to pass out while driving.

But there was worse news. Mr How was told that a woman his taxi hit has died.

After he lost consciousness, his taxi knocked down a 66-year-old pedestrian who died of a head injury.

"I was totally shocked and could not speak. I prefer death than this. Every day I will think about how could I have killed someone," Mr How told The Straits Times on Friday (Sept 20).

On Wednesday, the coroner ruled that the woman's death was an unfortunate traffic misadventure, as the doctor clarified that the tumour rupture caused severe bleeding in Mr How's abdomen and a loss of blood flow to his brain, leading him to lose consciousness.

It was not mentioned in court documents if any action will be taken against Mr How, who has lost his driving licence.

Once an independent man who worked the night shift seven days a week over the last 21 years, Mr How now sits listlessly in front of the television at home, worrying about how to make ends meet.

"I am very disappointed. What happened is a triple blow to me - killing someone, learning I have cancer and now I am jobless," said Mr How, who is married to a hotel receptionist. They have two children.

Not that he is in the mood to drive again, he clarified. Each time he has to cross a road or when he sees an elderly pedestrian, memories of the accident would come flooding back, sending "shock waves into his heart".

He could not bring himself to read about the accident in the newspapers until a few days after. When he eventually did, it was only for a short while. He could not go on after reading that the victim was "a doting mother".

He has not contacted her family as he does not know what to say to them.

"It is very hard. Saying sorry also has no meaning because a life is already gone," said Mr How, who is a free thinker.

He has gone for a few sessions of counselling at the hospital and his Catholic relatives have also given him items such as a rosary which they hope could help him find peace.

While guilt continues to rack him, Mr How said he could not have done anything differently on that fateful day.

He had just started his shift at 6.30pm and picked up three passengers at a taxi stand along Bishan Road.

He was driving past Lornie Road when he felt a sharp pain in his right abdomen that subsequently went away. While travelling along Commonwealth Avenue West towards Queensway, he felt the pain again. This time, on a scale of 10, the pain increased from a five to an eight.

He started breaking out in cold sweat and his vision became blur. He reached for medicated oil and applied it on his temples and nose.

"It was evening peak hour and there were many cars behind me. I could not have suddenly changed lane and stopped at the side. Seeing that we were fast reaching the destination, I signalled right and I don't remember anything that happened after that," said Mr How.

The passenger next to him noticed that his eyes had closed and quickly swung the steering wheel to the left to prevent the cab from crashing into the car in front at the traffic junction.

The taxi later swerved to the right, picked up speed and collided into at least three pedestrians, including Madam Tng Yew Huay, who died in hospital.

Mr How woke up momentarily to hear the passenger shouting at him and to see the windscreen shattered. The taxi came to a stop when it mounted a kerb.

"When I see the videos of what happened later on, I also scared. It is not myself, it is not my way of driving," he added.

After he was admitted to the hospital on March 22, doctors found out that a tumour in his liver had ruptured - causing him to lose consciousness at the wheel.

A surgery was done immediately to treat the bleeding. Two months later, he went through a keyhole surgery to remove affected parts of the liver so that the cancer will not spread to the rest of the body.

His condition is being monitored now through periodic CT scans.

The tumour, and its subsequent rupturing in the liver, came as a surprise to Mr How because he has had no major health issues since a brush with prostate cancer in 2005.

He was due to travel to Thailand with friends for a holiday that weekend but instead woke up in a hospital bed.

Said Mr How: "My friends and family tell me don't think so much, it is not my fault. But the mind is mine and I have a steady mind and a good memory, so how to forget?"

 

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