Oblivious driver shows why we can never take our eyes off the road

Driving a car, or any other vehicle, takes more skill and attention than we realize. When we pay attention and follow the rules, accidents are rare, as long as everybody else is doing the same. But it's often said that it's the "other driver" that we need to watch for.Show more

We've all been in that position where somebody pulls out of front of us as if they didn't look. It's even possible they looked but it didn't register that another vehicle was coming. Whatever the reason, without evasive action, there would have been a collision.

This is the case in this video. The car with the camera is traveling at the speed limit of 50km/h (30mph). The road has two lanes in either direction with stop lights at the intersections. It's Ontario, Canada, so drivers are allowed to pull up to a red light, stop, and then turn right on the red.

But the Ontario Highway Traffic Act is very clear that vehicles proceeding on the green light have the right of way. The car entering the intersection can only proceed if they have stopped and if their movement does not affect other traffic.

This driver began to edge forward as an SUV passed in front of them. The driver started to enter the intersection without yielding to the car following behind it. Possibly inattentive, or possibly misjudging the distance, the driver cut the oncoming car off. Luckily, nothing else had the attention of the other driver and he braked and swerved into the lane beside him. It is also fortunate that this lane was clear to allow for the evasive maneuver.

As a hint that the black car had nearly caused an accident, the driver of the car with the camera honked his horn as he passed by. But it isn't likely that the driver of the black car really understood what they had done wrong.

In the moments leading up to this, the driver of the camera car needed to recognize what was happening, and then be aware of traffic behind that might be affected if he slammed on his brakes. He also needed to check or already be aware of traffic beside him, preventing him from safely swerving. This moment clearly shows us what could happen if our attention is ever taken away, even briefly, from the road in front. Another thing that it demonstrates is the need for an awareness of the space around our cars at all times. Near accidents like this are quite common.