# Another life saved



## Uricasha (Feb 19, 2017)

http://www.abc15.com/news/region-no...-way-driver-dead-in-l-101-crash-in-scottsdale

Head on collision

Model X driver sent to hospital with non life threatening injuries. Other driver, RIP


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## garsh (Apr 4, 2016)

Wow. I can't even tell the type of the other vehicle.


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## MelindaV (Apr 2, 2016)

garsh said:


> Wow. I can't even tell the type of the other vehicle.


it looks like the black car in that pix is where they scooped up all it's parts and pieces - except for the cut off roof.

beyond the comment that Tesla builds really durable / safe cars, WTH is going on with the PHX freeways?! Any time I've visited I've not thought there is anything about their design that invites drivers to drive the wrong way in error. It happens everywhere, but seriously I can remember hearing of something similar around here maybe 1-2 times in the last year, but this is a crazy number of incidents!


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## scottf200 (Sep 21, 2017)

MelindaV said:


> it looks like the black car in that pix is where they scooped up all it's parts and pieces - except for the cut off roof.


Brutal. I can't tell if the other vehicle is a CUV or mini-van but it was pretty good sized.


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## Frank99 (Aug 3, 2017)

Scottf200 -
A six month old thread, but still valid.

MelindaV -
I live out here in Phoenix, and I agree with your incredulity.

I have a friend that came up with a theory over Christmas that sounds reasonable as to why we've seen so many wrong-way drivers here. The DOT has rebuilt most of the freeway onramp/offramps somewhat uniquely, kind of like an X rather than an H. As an example: 
X-shaped: https://www.google.com/maps/@33.5970359,-112.0100728,516m/data=!3m1!1e3
H-shaped: https://www.google.com/maps/@33.3199014,-111.9723167,396m/data=!3m1!1e3
The interesting thing about the X shaped intersection is that, as an example, if a driver is getting off the northbound lanes of the freeway and intends to turn left (west), the offramp points directly at the offramp for the southbound lanes turning left (east). If a driver isn't paying attention (or their attention is somehow impaired), the theory goes that when the light turns green, the driver goes straight - putting them directly on the SB freeway. With an H shaped junction, going straight would put you back on the NB freeway - no harm, no foul.

It's interesting that so many of the wrong-way drivers end up in accidents in the left lane of the freeway, but I think that's simple disorientation. They get on the freeway going the wrong way, they recognize that, so they prepare to get off at the next offramp by moving into the right lane - which happens to be the left lane for people going the right way, and moves the wrong way driver AWAY from all the ramps so they can't get off the freeway. I'd imagine there's a lot of panic in that confused cranium, such that an impaired driver simply may not be able to think straight enough to do a "right thing".


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## scottf200 (Sep 21, 2017)

Frank99 said:


> Scottf200 -
> A six month old thread, but still valid.


Let's just say that I'm pay close attention to Tesla Model X accidents. Below is my run in with a deer on a highway then thru some fence post and into a tree. It was a Sig X I waited 3 yrs for. My passenger was 100% OK and called 911. I obtained an eye/eye_orbit injury (still in-correction-progress) but the rest of me was 100% OK. After several months and all the medical and insurance bills worked out we bought a used (4k miles) service loaner.


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## Love (Sep 13, 2017)

scottf200 said:


> Let's just say that I'm pay close attention to Tesla Model X accidents. Below is my run in with a deer on a highway then thru some fence post and into a tree. It was a Sig X I waited 3 yrs for. My passenger was 100% OK and called 911. I obtained an eye/eye_orbit injury (still in-correction-progress) but the rest of me was 100% OK. After several months and all the medical and insurance bills worked out we bought a used (4k miles) service loaner.
> 
> View attachment 5219


I didn't like my options of "like, agree, etc..." for this one (none are fitting to me) so I wanted to post a quick response to say that I'm so glad it wasn't worse and you're doing better now. Not to trivialize your long journey back to recovery by any means, I'm just truly impressed after seeing that picture that things were not worse. Definitely makes sense regarding your interest in posts such as this (even if it was necro'd LOL jk )
Thank you for sharing and best wishes!

Did you see the Model 3 vs the telephone pole?


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## garsh (Apr 4, 2016)

scottf200 said:


> Let's just say that I'm pay close attention to Tesla Model X accidents. Below is my run in with a deer on a highway then thru some fence post and into a tree. It was a Sig X I waited 3 yrs for. My passenger was 100% OK and called 911. I obtained an eye/eye_orbit injury (still in-correction-progress) but the rest of me was 100% OK.


Ouchy! I hope your vision isn't affected long-term.
What went through the windshield? The deer?


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## Uricasha (Feb 19, 2017)

https://www.azdot.gov/projects/central-district-projects/i-17-wrong-way-detection-system/overview

For those that love data...
https://apps.azdot.gov/ADOTLibrary/publications/project_reports/PDF/AZ741.pdf


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## MelindaV (Apr 2, 2016)

Frank99 said:


> Scottf200 -
> A six month old thread, but still valid.
> 
> MelindaV -
> ...


Most of the offtramps/onramps around me are the X style and since my post last summer, I can find evidence of just one new wrong way wreck in the Portland metro area and that was near an H style off ramp/onramp. 
I wonder it constant traffic volume reduces the likelihood as well?? Or would that just mean a crash would happen closer to where they entered the freeway?


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## scottf200 (Sep 21, 2017)

Sorry for the aside in this thread. The X and H intersection is *very* interesting. I'll try not to post after the below related to my accident.



Lovesword said:


> I didn't like my options of "like, agree, etc..." for this one (none are fitting to me) so I wanted to post a quick response to say that I'm so glad it wasn't worse and you're doing better now. Not to trivialize your long journey back to recovery by any means, I'm just truly impressed after seeing that picture that things were not worse. Definitely makes sense regarding your interest in posts such as this (even if it was necro'd LOL jk ) Thank you for sharing and best wishes! Did you see the Model 3 vs the telephone pole?


No worries and thanks for your good wishes. Indeed it could have been much much worse. I've had first responders tell me that when animals come through windshields the end results are usually not good. I'm on the road to recovery mentally and physically. I'll be fine. My wife is recovering as well. She was not in the accident but got the call at midnight then drove through a couple states to where my son and I were. Needless to say she'll be a little nervous for my next roadtrip alone or with another person besides her. We'll visit our other son in a couple months and that will be the first trip in the new X. It about 400 miles. If I'm on a trip she can watch our activity on teslafi.com which is *awesome* and pretty cheap for an annual fee (I rarely pay subscriptions).

[update]I did see the Model 3 vs the pole. Wow. Nice crumple zone![/update]



garsh said:


> Ouchy! I hope your vision isn't affected long-term.
> What went through the windshield? The deer?


We don't know about long term. I have a pretty severe traumatic cataract which has not been fixed yet as we are re-positioning the eye to the best place first (otherwise you confuse the brain with mismatched L&R images).
An oncoming car hit the deer and it flew up in the air and came down through my windshield. I don't know how much of it came through.

I'm doing good overall and feel blessed with my family and life that we have. Thanks.


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## Brokedoc (May 28, 2017)

scottf200 said:


> Sorry for the aside in this thread. The X and H intersection is *very* interesting. I'll try not to post after the below related to my accident.
> 
> No worries and thanks for your good wishes. Indeed it could have been much much worse. I've had first responders tell me that when animals come through windshields the end results are usually not good. I'm on the road to recovery mentally and physically. I'll be fine. My wife is recovering as well. She was not in the accident but got the call at midnight then drove through a couple states to where my son and I were. Needless to say she'll be a little nervous for my next roadtrip alone or with another person besides her. We'll visit our other son in a couple months and that will be the first trip in the new X. It about 400 miles. If I'm on a trip she can watch our activity on teslafi.com which is *awesome* and pretty cheap for an annual fee (I rarely pay subscriptions).
> 
> ...


Thank goodness you're alive and able to recover.

Hitting a standing deer at highway speed can cause tremendous damage but the safety structure of the car usually protects occupants. A flying deer ricocheting off of an oncoming car is catastrophe because it misses the safety crumple zones. I think of people killed/injured from kids throwing 5 pound bricks over an overpass not to think of a 100lb female deer or 200lb male deer....

After the deer came thru the windshield, you obviously lost control from the head injury and the design of the Tesla protected you from the subsequent impacts. It's because of stories like yours that I don't think I will own a car other than Tesla for the rest of my life.

As an aside, if you had a dashcam, it would have been an instant viral video.


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