AN online truckers' magazine has posted graphic footage of caravans
coming to grief on the nation's highways.
The unedited dashcam videos show a variety of caravans developing the
wobbles and jackknifing after overtaking trucks.
And the magazine also takes a dig at Australia's road rules which allow
people without any experience to hitch up their caravans and hit the road
without any training or tests.
The videos appear on the digital version of Diesel, Australia’s
premier truck and trailer publication.
"One of the perennial problems suffered by trucks is the car towing a
caravan losing control and causing mayhem," it said.
"If truck drivers were driving a combination the same size, they would
have had to undergo training.
"At the same time, someone who has never driven anything bigger than a
Hyundai Excel can go along to a caravan yard, buy a monster can and start
towing it with anything with a towbar."
The magazine pointed out that with the onset of the main holiday season,
the danger of it happening in front of trucks increased.
"Often the caravan starts to wiggle coming through the disturbed air
around a truck and the driver does not have the skills to bring it back
under control," it said.
"There is no training requirement to tow something which actually needs to
be handled with care."
It warned that the basic dynamics of a car and caravan were "all wrong",
with the towing point only about a metre behind the rear axle of the tow
vehicle.
"This is just an accident waiting to happen, and it does," it said.
"These drivers have no idea what to do once the caravan gets a wiggle on.
"They seem unaware of what is going on before the caravan is completely
out of control."
To view the videos,
click here.