Tuesday, May 25, 2010

Traffic, Cell Phones, Fast Cars, and Accidents!

But not necessarily in that order!

If you look at the below photo on the left side you'll see a gentleman standing in the shoulder of the highway! Fortunately, I'm not that guy! Ever have a day when you say, "Wow; better you than me?"

No, I'm not that guy standing in the shoulder of the highway, I'm merely one of the many people impacted by the fender-bender that caused this back up. (Get the pun.. Impacted?) I was safely sitting behind the wheel of my vehicle (and behind my trusty camera) but stuck in traffic on this lovely California freeway.




What you may not be able to make out (unless you zoom in) Is that the guy in the shoulder is talking on his cell phone and staring at what is probably "his" smashed up car.




Now I'm not completely sure.... But




I think this small blue car was on the receiving end of this smash up. Or the "Smashee."


This sporty looking red car.... Probably the "Smasher."

The good news.... No one appeared to be hurt.



(What's wrong with this picture?)

Here's my take on these things.



I hate being stuck in traffic, especially when I'm going somewhere. And guess what? If I'm in the car, I'm usually going somewhere. Los Angeles is known for traffic but honestly, every big city has traffic and if you pick the wrong time of day and the wrong route it will take longer. You might as well plan accordingly.


Cell phones are great! There's so much capability these days packaged into these compact devices. You can pay your bills, take photos, browse the web, listen to music, check and send emails and so much more.... But driving down the freeway at 80 mph is not the time to be texting or looking away from the road. And if you're one of those people who can't walk and chew gum at the same time, you probably shouldn't drive and talk on the telephone at the same time either. Know your limits.


I'm not a big lover of "Fast Cars." Yeah, they look cool and go fast and make lots of noise but where can you drive them? You usually can't enjoy the speed of a fast car because there's too much traffic. If you try to drive them like they were meant to be driven, the cops will pull you over and write you a ticket. Or else, someone pulls in front of you quickly and you become a smasher. I look at cars more for their utility and comfort. Can I carry all of my crap inside of it? Can it get me to where I need to go? Through the snow, ice, mud, hills, mountains and such. Does it have enough leg room? How's the stereo? You know.... things like that.

Accidents- Simply put: I don't like accidents. Especially if someone gets hurt or if it's my fault. Accidents are no fun at all.

Well, that's all I have to say about these things... so be careful out there because someone is driving really fast and talking on their cell phone or texting and it's gonna cause an accident and back up the traffic!



5 comments:

Bowie Mike said...

And no matter how hard I try not to, I have to look when I pass an accident. Call me a rubbernecker.

Jane Turley said...

I have nearly been hit twice by people on their mobile phones - in both incidents they were turning a corner with only one hand on the steering wheel - had I not been driving within the speed limit and had my wits about me it would have reulted in two nasty smashes. It's illegal over here - but people still do it - I can't understand why when the cost of a holder etc is so minimal these days. I was recently sent some photos of smash of a woman who was on her phone whilst pulling out of a juction - and a motorbike travelling at 85mph - the whole of the bike was embedded inside the car; the two occupants and the motorcyclist died instantly. I was thinking of sticking on my blog it was so shocking - sometimes pictures can speak volumes.

intrepidideas said...

Bowie Mike, everyone rubbernecks. There's no way around it.

Jane, Lucky you to have avoided those accidents. I think I saw the photos from that same motorbike accident. Tragic.

Heather Dugan Creative / Footsteps said...

Scary. And when you think of what the priority might have been: checking the Dow Jones or a movie start time, making dinner reservations or seeing if you received an email reply... Pretty petty stuff to play with on the freeway.

Anonymous said...

I remember my Dad's experience while driving in a long avenue. He witnessed a terrible accident that happened because of using cell phone while driving. He was literally shaking when he relayed the accident to us. There were five cars damaged and six people terribly died because a guy in a red Toyota car was seen typing in his cell phone seconds before the accident ensued. Dad got to witnessed what happened on his way to work.

It could have been fine if no lives were lost and properties damaged, but using cell phone while driving is really not advisable. Although there are dependable collision repair Dallas TX area providers when it comes to street accidents, it's still best to avoid using cell phones while driving. Lastly, I'm also aware that collision repair in Dallas, Texas can be trusted during street catastrophes. I'm grateful for the interesting post!