Originally Posted by Orangetxguy

However, since that trooper waited for the straight stretch of roadway, before passing Ben...the trooper was well aware of his responsability to pass only when it was safe to do so.

Originally Posted by ironeagle2006

Rev read my thread on when I got a ticket for Scotts Law here in IL then even when you comply with the law sometimes the cops will still cite you.

Originally Posted by golfhobo

This is why I said a call to the supervisor might be in order.... pretty much to explain his reasoning.

It wasn't clear from his first post, but it SHOULD be now... that his window was DOWN, and the officer was spitting at him through an OPEN window.

Also, he has made it quite clear to all but the Rev., that this was a two lane road with absolutely NO ROOM to pull over without going in a ditch, or at least risking it.... You all HAVE heard of a "soft shoulder" right?

So, had he stopped immediately, it would have been IN the lane of traffic, and ON a curve. The officer would be blocked behind him and in a VERY unsafe and risky position to try to pass him (from a point of no acceleration on his part.)

Ben, did the SMART thing.... something GOOD truckers are often called on to do! HE slowed but kept moving until he was on a STRAIGHT stretch of road, so that the officer would have a line of sight for a distance in which he could judge whether it was safe to pass, while having at least somewhat of a "running start" at it.

EVERY law that was quoted, ASSUMED that there was a portion of "roadway" to move over into, and at least partially out of the traffic lane. Had Ben stopped immeditately in this case, the officer would have been stopped dead behind him IN THE LANE. Being on a curve would put the officers life (and possibly Ben's) at risk had he tried to pass. Every law ALSO seemed to allow for some judgement by the motorist as to IF and WHEN he could follow the LETTER of the law.

Ben did the RIGHT thing, whether some idiot politician has worded that eventuality into the LAW, or not. I'm not saying his attitude was the best, but I would've reacted out of SHOCK myself, had an officer that I had tried to HELP jumped up on my truck and berated ME, too!

If you want to get so dang "technical" about the LETTER of the law, I'm sure you can find one against stopping IN THE TRAFFIC LANE, as well. I think it is GOOD to know what the law says, but there is no substitution for common sense!

Originally Posted by Orangetxguy

Why do you doubt that it is true? Are you unfamiliar with the back roads of West Virginia?

It's pretty obvious that there are drivers (and former drivers) that have no clue as to the reason's a HazMat truck, is not to stop on the roadway.

Unlike a van full of furniture, layed over in a ditch, there is more involved in recovering a tanker full of gasoline, or anyother hazardous material, that is laid over in a ditch. The fines for laying a van full of furniture over are miniscule, compared to the fines involved with hazardous material.

That trooper could have passed Ben in the curves he as talked about. He could have done it quite easily, as many many motorists do every day (yes, motorists that have no patience for the driver performing his duties safely, pass tankers on curves and shoulders as well). However, since that trooper waited for the straight stretch of roadway, before passing Ben...the trooper was well aware of his responsability to pass only when it was safe to do so.

Those of you whom have any doubts about whether Ben did the right thing...contact your local State Highway Patrol office, and ask what thier policy is, when it comes to emergency vehicles under response conditions, and passing hazardous material transports on narrow roadways. They do have a policy, and it does not involve the truck stopping in the roadway or on soft shoulders. Hazardous Material transportation is 90 percent of what I have done since 1979. I have never been issued a traffic citation while moving a load, and I have been in this exact type situation, as Ben has described, more times than I can count.

In roadway segments that are curved I always maintain my truck speed. If I slow down, that only delay's the emergency vehicle that much longer.

I activate my emergency flashers, as soon as I see an approaching emergency vehicle, with it's response lights activated. My flashers acknowledge to the driver of that Emergency Vehicle, that I am aware of its presence. The flashers also make the driver of the emergency vehicle aware, of the dangers my truck posses, to themselves, as well as to the public in general AND the enviroment.

Once I am into a straight stretch of roadway, that will provide for safe passage, I move to the FOGLINE at a constant speed, then reduce speed once the emergency vehicle is in the opposite lane.

Skywalker, Cyanide, Mike3fan, Muddpuddle, Maniac, and several others here all haul haz-mat. Each of them is completely aware, I am sure, of exactly how bad, situations can and will become, if they put their trucks over into a ditch. They and I have hauled chemicals, that kcoiv and the good rev would not like to have in their cities, safely contained in a vessel, let-alone rolled over in a ditch.
Once a chemical (gasoline is a chemical) is loose, it is to late to think about safety. You don't take chances, ever.Some of these chem's are so bad, moonsuits are worn to handle them.

oh yeah...I also activate my emergency flashers on multi-lane roadways, when I am approaching stopped traffic in a city, such as Kansas City, just to make other motorists aware something is happening.

Originally Posted by ben45750

This happened a couple days ago and is really bugging the S*@T out of me.

I haul gas and I had a delivery of 8,800 gallons going to Glenville, WV. The only legal way to get there is to run a very narrow road. There are two other ways to get there, but because of weight restrictions on bridges the narrow road is the way we must take, if it's a smaller order you can take other routes but when your 79,500 there is no other choice. Some might know the road if your from WV. Rt 5 West to Glenville, Exit 79 off I-79.

About 5-6 miles west of I-79 I have 2 cars following me. I can only do 35 MPH average, some straights I can get to 50 and some curves I'm down to 15, lots of hills and sharp curves. A State Trooper comes flying up behind us, the 2 cars can get out of his way with no problem, I have no where to go. There is no shoulder, if I do pull off the road I am going into a deep ditch. I slow down thinking he can just simply pass me, I'm waving him around me and he doesn't do anything. Finally we get to a straight stretch and he passes me.

About 5 miles down the road there is an accident, right lane blocked so they are letting traffic go by in the left lane. I get right up to the accident and the officer jumps out in the middle of the road with his hand up. He proceeds to jump on the side of my truck and yell at me through my window. I stoped the truck, set the brakes and ask him to get off of my truck. That pissed him off even more. I asked him what he wanted me to do? I asked him if he wanted me to cause another accident by pulling over in the ditch (no doubt the truck would have went over) and he would have 45,000 pounds of gas to deal with IF it didn't ignite. he told me he didn't care and when an emergency vehicle has their lights on I MUST GET OVER. I told him to write the ticket and lets see what an educated judge thinks about this situation. He did this in front of a group a people around the accident, which in my opinion makes me and my company look bad and that we don't obey law enforcement. Told my dispatcher and they just blew it off. I think this cop was way out of line and a idiot. I know his badge number, car number and his name. Should I write a complaint about him of let it go? Or was I in the wrong and should have got out of his way?

Originally Posted by Rev.Vassago

:lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol:

RevVassago; eagerly awaits golfhobo's next excuse as to why Ben shouldn't have stopped.