Driver's dangerous move cops backlash: 'Could have killed someone'
People were shocked by a video showing 'dangerous' driving from a ute to prevent being overtaken on a wet, windy road.
A Queensland woman has shared frightening footage of a driver appearing to increase their speed to prevent being overtaken on a windy stretch of road in the rain.
In the dashcam video the driver of a black ute can be seen speeding up as an overtaking lane opens and a white ute tries to go around — blocking the driver of the white ute and forcing them back.
The video was shared to a Cairns Facebook page with the poster appalled by the black ute driver's behaviour. "The ute then continually crosses double lines and then overtakes a truck over double lines on a blind corner," the woman said in her post.
The behaviour was also heavily criticised by viewers online, but Sally Webb, Deputy Secretary Safety, Environment and Regulation for Transport for NSW, told Yahoo News Australia it can also be considered an offence.
Mick Humphries, an expert in the field and Licensing Compliance Manager at RAISE Training, told Yahoo News Australia just how "dangerous" this move really is, and how easily it could go wrong.
"There is no place for using your vehicle as a weapon that weighs in excess of a tonne," he said. "This behaviour is both ignorant and dangerous. [The] loss of control on a bend is exponentially higher ... in the event of losing traction on the hard bend, [the ute] could wind up in the oncoming traffic."
Reactions to the dangerous driving were scathing
One horrified viewer responded to the video saying, "[they] could of killed someone!!" and another called for the footage to be "taken to the police" so the dangerous driver could be "held accountable".
Despite this, most also highlighted how common negligent driving like this actually is, commenting that this behaviour "happens all the time".
More than just rude behaviour
Speeding up to prevent another car overtaking is not just considered universally poor behaviour, it's also an offence in most jurisdictions across Australia —though each have their own legislation and consequences.
In NSW, for example, if a person illegally increases their speed when a driver is overtaking them, they can cop a $365 fine and lose three demerit points.
This "rule is in place to reduce the dangers that drivers can be exposed to when overtaking and to keep overtaking lanes clear of vehicles as much as possible", Ms Webb told Yahoo.
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