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Comment by danso | Hacker News Reader

The story and the video evidence assert that his turn signal was on for a full 4 seconds before making the lane change

I don't know how driving in the US works, but here in Germany a turn signal doesn't give you any rights to change lanes if there is oncoming traffic, no matter how long it's been on. The driver changing lanes is most likely at least partially at fault here.

Legally yes. Anybody who drove a truck or even utilitary vehicles with blindspots know to give way when a truck activate its blinkers, and honestly even when i did not know how shitty it was i was carefull, because my driving instructor told me a dozen time about truck blindspots.

The NYT story cites Tesla court filings about the police's determination — "The police faulted the Tesla driver — not the car — for his inattention and his driving at an unsafe speed," Mr. McCarthy wrote. IANAL, but given no other info about the investigators' conclusions, I wouldn't necessarily assume that the truck driver didn't have some* fault, and California isn't a state where it's either/or when it comes to blame — i.e. both drivers can share partial blame and recover damages.

California has a couple of laws [0] that mandate "reasonable or prudent" speed, e.g.

> No person shall drive a vehicle upon a highway at a speed greater than is reasonable or prudent having due regard for weather, visibility, the traffic on, and the surface and width of, the highway, and in no event at a speed which endangers the safety of persons or property.

The truck met the requirement [1] for signaling a change (100 feet beforehand). Is it "reasonable or prudent" for the Tesla driver to maintain speed (nevermind accelerate at the last second) with the truck slowly entering the lane? Especially with the left lane traffic having slowed down enough that, in the span of the 5 second clip, the Tesla is seen passing 2 cars on their right before hitting the truck?

[0] https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/codes_displaySectio...

[1] https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/codes_displaySectio...

In Germany you are not allowed to pass on the right, so racing into a car merging from the left would be right out.

Indeed, sitting in a taxi on US highways was a very scary experience with cars overtaking on both sides.

Overtaking is a big word, you maybe meant passing? With the keep your lane doctrine that is something to be expected.

Here in Switzerland we are allowed to PASS traffic on the right hand side to (since Jan.01.2021). But you are NOT allowed to overtake, as in change lanes actively.

I admit that I'm not terribly familiar with the correct vocabulary even in my native language. Thanks for pointing that out. I meant passing.

The truck touches the white line at 2 seconds, crossed into lane at 3 seconds, fully in the lane at 4 seconds.

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