Besides being rude, cutting off fellow drivers is an obvious safety concern, but if you need further convincing, make sure to watch this video. This dramatic footage shows a careless driver causing a six-vehicle crash that closed the biggest highway in the country for hours. What makes it even worse is that they fled the scene of the collision they caused, but the Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) is on the hunt.
The crash happened Tuesday on the 401 westbound near Brock Road in the Durham Region in the Greater Toronto Area. A dashcam on the tractor-trailer that was caught up in the crash shows a rainy day and a trucker who is following the vehicle in front at a safe distance.
A blue Toyota Corolla brakes and lets the turn signal have about half a blink before moving into the truck's lane just feet ahead of its bumper. The combination of not signalling properly and cutting in too close is dangerous enough in the dry, let alone the rain, but then the Corolla driver (who is also failing to use their lights on a day with low visibility) does something even more stupid.
The vehicle in front of this duo appears to be slowing, as the Corolla begins to catch up with it. The Corolla driver then slams on the brakes, which forces the trucker to do the same.
While the trucker could have slammed into the back of the Corolla, they made the split-second decision to try to avoid the crash, which sent the truck into the barrier. According to police, the bonehead in the blue car's move lead to a vehicle fire and hours of highway closures, but, fortunately, no reported serious injuries.
Thankfully, the truck driver had their dashboard camera running, and the OPP have identified the driver of the blue car. Police said that an investigation is ongoing and charges are pending.
The lesson? Don't cut off anyone, especially a trucker in the rain. Signal, use your mirrors, and remember that sometimes keeping a proper distance is the responsibility of the lead car too.
