Thread started by Hal at 05.26.09 - 8:20 am

I hate writing these emails, but I love being ABLE to. This guy passed me at easily 55 MPH on a two-lane road that couldn't have been more than a 35-MPH zone. But there was a website emblazoned on the van (and on the license plate), so I just sent them an email:


To whom it may concern,

At about 7:30 in the morning on May 26th, I was riding down a stretch of East St. in Concord on my way to the Bart station on a loaded-down commuter bicycle at a pretty steady clip, when a large white cargo van with the name of your company on it and the California license plane "DJAYCOM" passed me within inches at a very high speed, halfway in between the left and right lanes. I was riding in the right lane, and the other lane was clear.

I would hopefully like to bring to the attention of management that whoever was driving your company van this morning was driving recklessly and illegally, and is putting forward a very negative image of your company to other road users.

(As a sarcastic aside: if you're going to almost kill people on the road, it's a good thing that your contact information is so visible.)

Thank you for your attention to this issue. Please contact me if you have any further questions about this incident.

-Hal Bergman
AltPixel, Inc
http://www.altpixel.com

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Wonder if someone is going to get in trouble



Avis_One
05.26.09 - 8:33 am

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That would be nice.

I had the thought "wow, somebody could possibly lose their job over this, especially if they have reports of other incidents" and started to feel bad, but then I remembered that the dude almost killed me, and realized that I'd rather see a reckless driver without a job than be dead, or know that another person is dead because this guy is hauling ass because of some unknown company policy.

Look, if you're driving a top-heavy cargo van, you have no reason to be barreling down a street, much less next to a school. (I really should have mentioned that in the email). I kind of hope somebody gets reprimanded for this.



Hal
responding to a comment by Avis_One
05.26.09 - 9:43 am

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This is why all large, OTR trucking/transportation companies like Swift, Knight, England, and such have all these "report bad drivers at 800-xxx-xxxx" signs all over the 53' foot trailer, as well as ICC#'s all over the tractor.

Sad part is, while these labels are good for when a driver is weaving like a mad-dog on a long-stretch of road where a car or another 18wheeler could get knocked out, they could also be utilized by some busy-body who bitches about something like flipping a bitch in a non-truck area, trying to get back to the main drag.



bentstrider
responding to a comment by Hal
05.26.09 - 10:00 am

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Good going you did the right thing....

We need an update, if you get a reply from the company.



Debut213
05.26.09 - 10:05 am

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How do you know you didn't email the driver/owner of the company? This happened to me once and I went to the office of this driver that did this. It was a cement cutting company. Anyways they pretty much defended the driver and "circled the wagons" defending themselves. If you can make them see that this driving behavior could lead to increase in insurance rates and possible lawsuits, then you stand a much better chance. And yes, some company could look bad driving out in public, if they have a public image to keep. Obviously these guys didn't.

Good luck and I hope you get a sincere apology. I know it pisses me off when a driver like feels they gota teach someone a lesson.



User1
05.26.09 - 1:56 pm

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I'll keep you updated if something happens, but I haven't heard back yet and it's been almost two days, so I'll be surprised if I hear back.

::shrug:: It was worth a shot.



Hal
responding to a comment by User1
05.28.09 - 12:35 am

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