Reflecting On Vanessa Angel's Accident Due To Tubagus Joddy's Negligence, The Expert Says That Driving On The Highway Should Not Be Considered Like A Circuit

Illustration. (Photo: Doc. Antara)

JAKARTA - Actress Vanessa Angel and her husband, Febri "Aunt" Andriansyah, died in an accident on the Jombang-Mojokerto toll road last week. The negligence of the driver, namely Tubagus Joddy, is considered to be the cause of the deadly accident.

Director of Training & Campaign Indonesia Road Safety Partnership Eko Reksodipuro revealed the factors that drivers need to pay attention to when driving on toll roads, especially long routes, such as the Jakarta-Surabaya route.

"A small mistake on the toll road can result in a fatal accident, and can even claim lives," he said in a written statement, quoted from Antara, Tuesday, November 9.

The most important factor, according to Eko, is that drivers must be aware of their limits. Driving on the expressway is not the same as a racer on a circuit who is free to maneuver at high speed.

The fast lane, for example, is not the path to go. It was just to overtake, after using it the driver had to return to lane 2 or 1 and it had to reach maximum speed, he said.

Eko gave an example that often the habit of driving on inner-city toll roads is carried away when driving on out-of-town toll roads, when the driver wants to be at the forefront or tends to be reluctant to be grabbed, so it looks like he is selfish or wants to win himself.

Not infrequently drivers also experience euphoria when driving outside the city from within the city, resulting in overspeed.

"In fact, driving at a speed of 150 km / h, equals 150,000 meters / 3,600 seconds, while the eye reaction takes two seconds to perceive and react," he said.

In principle, said Eko, overtaking as quickly as possible is not dangerous, as long as the driver is aware to return to lane 2 or 1.

He strongly does not recommend staying in lane 3 because it will disturb other road users and have the potential to cause minor errors whose impact is unpredictable.

"In the future, it's three seconds, don't be next to each other, let alone next to heavy vehicles. Drivers must be able to decide whether to follow or not, don't walk side by side. Just like PPKM, so, on the highway we also have to social distancing," he said.

Regarding the feasibility of toll road infrastructure, he said, it can be ascertained that it has met applicable standards, because every facility implemented on toll roads has taken into account the risk of fatality in the event of an accident.

For example, in the application of a concrete guardrail on the side of the road, or a dividing fence on a bridge, which is to minimize the risk of vehicles crossing into the opposite lane.

"We must be aware of the limits of our abilities, from the driver's side we must be aware of their limits, because everyone does not have the same abilities, so there is awareness," said Eko.

According to him, the rapid development of infrastructure, especially toll roads, has recently made it easier for people to carry out their activities, especially activities that require people to move from one place to another in a relatively faster time than crossing conventional routes.

According to records, by crossing the Trans-Java Toll Road, the driver only takes 9 hours 43 minutes to complete the Jakarta-Surabaya route with an average speed of 60-100 km/hour.

Meanwhile, other trials have to take 15 hours 41 minutes to reach the same location through conventional routes. Of course, with sufficient rest at a few stops.

Unfortunately, said Eko, the convenience for the sake of convenience offered by toll roads is not accompanied by the driver's awareness of the importance of various factors that are mostly considered trivial, including the minimum speed limit, and the call to rest at certain points to reduce concentration problems which are mostly caused by factors. attack drowsiness.