This real-life situation narrowly avoided should be a good enough example to teach your kids not to cross the street without looking twice and to cross only when safe. An amazing video popped up on Reddit earlier yesterday (Nov. 10, 2017) showcasing just how amazing the braking system works on a modern day truck and why it’s important to install rules about safety as early as possible. Check out the eye-opening video below!
The dash cam video takes place in Norway presumably right after school’s finished for the day. A green bus carrying kids home to their designated bus stop turns on its flashers as it slows to a stop to let a set of kids off. Kids being kids, safety sometimes is the last thing on their mind and two kids dash across the road across oncoming traffic to the other side. Unbeknownst to them, there’s a Volvo semi-truck barreling down at speed, headed right towards them. One of the kids stops just in time and heads back, but one kid keeps running. Not quick enough for emergency brakes to recognize a danger and act, the vigilant driver slams on his brakes. His truck stops just in time and misses the kid by inches.
It’s both surprising and not surprising that this Volvo truck stopped in time. It’s amazing how much force must be exerted by the trucks braking system in order to shed so much speed in such a short amount of time. Fully laden trucks can weigh up to 40 tons. To shed so much weight, like a normal car, trucks have a set of brakes on each wheel. In this case, you can count six axles, so a total of 12 brakes.
Then again, it’s not super surprising as Volvo is known for their commitment to safety. Volvo gave us the three-point seatbelt as early as 1959. And when it comes to their brakes, this means top-tier brakes working together with the latest technology. Check out just how effective their system is with this braking demo video.
It’s cliche, but safety first is always a good rule to live by. In a perfect world, no accidents would ever occur. But since we live in the real world, engineers, like those at Volvo, are making sure that their products can help to avoid bad situations altogether.
