M8 eastbound this morning just level with the M73 slip road.
Small van breaks down in the middle lane, another van (different company) is stuck behind it.
Vehicles going down the slip road at 70mph, others overtaking on the outside lane at 70 mph, other vehicles swerving onto inside lane at last minute when they see what is happening:
If you were driver of van 1 what would you do?
If you were driver of van 2 what would you do?
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1/ be as far away as possible somewhere safe
2/ be with 1 having a fag
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Van1's stuffed, he's made some choices in the run up to where he is now, and he's been unlucky, but now he's just stuffed.
Staying where he is, braced for impact is his best choice right now. If someone slams into Van2 (and Van2 into Van1) physics says Van2 will take most of the energy.
Having said that if it's an HGV slams into Van2, it doesn't really matter if Van2 takes most of the energy, there's still enough left over to kill Van1.
Escape's impossible, you can't see far enough back in your wing mirror for a clear enough gap to make a run for it to the central reservation. Climbing over to the passenger seat's too dangerous, all the time it takes you to climb, you may as well be walking in the carriageway for all the protection you have.
Can you crank the starter motor to get some distance between you and van2 and ideally get to the left?
Van2 might try and give you a shove, can you steer or do you need a way to tell him to stop because your wheels are pointed for lane3 and you have no steering?
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Can he drive far enough on the starter motor to reach the point where the slip road has turned off and the hard shoulder starts?
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Motorway breakdown - what would you do? - Zero
