Plan B Revisited
Another look at the 1Rider strategy for putting yourself out of reach of a vehicle threatening to cross your path, with a real-world example.
Plan B of this thread's crash-prevention strategy, I claim, can often put you safely out of reach of a vehicle threatening to cross your path. You try but fail to make yourself seen, and the bozo pulls out anyway. Can you really protect yourself from what seems like an inevitable crash?
Posters in two recent threads about crashes between a motorcycle and a left-turning vehicle maintained that the crash was impossible to avoid, that any rider in the same situation would have crashed just as the victim did. I have analyzed one of them in more detail, and I'm going to try to show that it could have been avoided with Plan B. Hopefully, I can persuade you to employ this strategy in your own riding.
The crash occurred in a rural/suburban area on a two-lane road with a mixture of homes, small businesses, and open space (see photo below). As the motorcycle was traveling from left to right at approximately the posted speed limit of 35mph, a car pulled out from the stop sign, turning left, and the two collided in the intersection. I'm not identifying the location or any other details because the purpose of this post isn't to call attention to a particular crash but to show what you can do in a similar situation.
Aerial photo from Google Earth. Scale shows distance in feet from center of cross street.
Plan B in action
The technique (see the post linked above for all the details) is simply this: When approaching a vehicle threatening to cross your path:
- slow down
- cover the brake
- increase space cushion to the threat
These adjustments give you two advantages. The first, shorter stopping distance, is due to the first two adjustments. At 35mph, not covering the brake, and with MSF-level brake application, it will take 134 feet to react and brake to a stop. If the vehicle pulls out when you're closer than 134 feet, you will not be able to stop in time to avoid the crash. But if you slow to 30mph and cover the brake, total stopping distance is cut to 83 feet. And that's with just basic MSF braking skill. If you can brake at a LEO level (still short of test rider / test track performance) it goes down to 62 feet.
The second advantage is gained by moving away from the threat. As you near the intersection you eventually reach a point where you cannot be hit because you will cross in front of the vehicle. The location of this safe zone depends on your speed, the vehicle's acceleration, and the distance between you. By moving laterally away from the threat, you enter this zone sooner and are protected at greater distance from the intersection. In the right third of your lane, you would cross 10 feet past the limit line. If the vehicle accelerates normally and you're going 30mph, you could cross in front of it from 70 feet away. But near the road centerline, 20 feet past the limit line, you could cross in front from 98 feet away, nearly 30 feet of extra protection.
The payoff
Approaching this intersection without the Plan B adjustments--at 35mph, not covering the brake, in the middle of your lane--you could brake to a stop if the vehicle pulled out when you were farther than 134 feet from the intersection, and you could pass in front if it pulled out when you were closer than 99 feet. But in between, from 99 to 134 feet, there's nothing you could do--a crash would be inevitable.
However, with the adjustments, you dramatically improve your chances of avoiding the collision: By slowing to 30, covering the brake, and moving out to the roadway centerline, you can come to a stop if the vehicle pulls out when you are farther than 83 feet from the intersection and cross in front from 98 feet. So no matter where you are when it pulls out, you have an option that will save you from a crash. And in the interval between 83 and 98 feet, you can prevent a crash either by braking or continuing through at constant speed. No exceptional ability is required--just recognition of the threat, three easy adjustments, a good decision on whether to brake or continue, and, if braking is necessary, competent execution at an average skill level.
The limitations
Plan B is not a miracle strategy that can prevent all left-turner crashes. As mentioned above, it requires making the right decision, which may not be easy. It also has an inherent limitation. When approach speed is high and distance short, it may not be possible to slow enough or increase lateral space cushion enough to put yourself out of reach. However, awareness of this limitation can still help you survive. For example, riding on a narrow rural road at 55mph, an oncoming vehicle intending to turn left is a much greater danger than at 35mph in town with a full lane or two of separation. If you recognize the exceptional danger of the situation, you can make more a severe adjustment than normal to reduce the risk, even though you can't eliminate it.
Collisions with left-turning vehicles, oncoming and crossing from the right, are the most frequent multiple vehicle crashes that motorcyclists fall victim to, and they often result in serious injuries. But many can be prevented by rider action alone, regardless of legal fault. Sometimes all you need is the good sense to keep speed down in congested areas. And, you must be able to anticipate hidden threats that can appear with little warning and take positive action to make sure you see them and they see you. But in spite of good sense and keen awareness, you can still be threatened by a driver who just doesn't see you. When that happens, the tactics of Plan B may help to keep you safe.
/proud to wear orange/
