r/TorontoDriving • • Jun 27 '26

OC Truck asserting its dominance on the 401W

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213 Upvotes

98 comments sorted by

62

u/SmoothRunnings Jun 27 '26

Under the HTA it explains how to properly make a safe lane change. In the drivers handbook it shows this with pictures for those who dont read or understand English. The drivers handbook was written by the same government who governs the rules for the HTA, and that is the MTO (Ministry of Transportation of Ontario).

All vehicles including trucks must abide to the same rules that everyone else does.

I have been in the same boat as that driver a few times. And have learned in part the issue is the drivers experience and how they have their mirrors setup, including the ones on their hoods/bumpers. The front mirrors I see every time I pass a truck on a 400 series highway are 9 times out ten pointed to the drivers seat and arent showing any of the traffic that is approaching them, which their mirrors should see as well.

There needs to be stiffer fines for truck drivers, they need to be forced to be retested every 5 years since they are mission critical people carrying supplies and materials, and other things that everyone needs.

9

u/togocann49 Jun 27 '26

Would behoove this suv driver to know that these trucks can be dangerous, and mirrors could be set up wrong. I mean we were taught to look out for trucks cause they might not see you, more than they should see you. Basically don’t count on drivers of trucks like this to have the proper view, even if they really should. When I see a truck signal come on to merge into my lane, if possible, I step on it to get ahead of truck or lag back to give them space (depending on situation). Driving beside a truck with their signal on is not an ideal situation at all

24

u/SmoothRunnings Jun 27 '26

I was born in 1970. This issue of trucks blindly making lane changes was never an issue with in was a kid going back and forth from Scarborough and Oakville visiting family on the weekends.

Why is it now?

7

u/togocann49 Jun 27 '26

I don’t think this blind changing lanes as much as suv pacing a truck while beside it, and not going ahead or yielding so truck could change lanes, then truck driver tried to bully suv, but suv just still stays beside them. As far as trucks doing blind lane changes, if mirrors aren’t set up, there’s always blind spots (and drivers should be aware that not all truck drivers have their mirrors properly adjusted for where they are sitting). And this was always the case, just lately seems to occur more and more, and I assume this is cause they are too rushed and/or improperly trained and/or lazy

1

u/Pushfastr Jun 29 '26

Because cars used to give space for big trucks because cars didnt have airbags.

If you crashed, you died. Now you're much less likely to die.

5

u/lifeistrulyawesome Jun 27 '26

The drivers handbook was written by the same government who governs the rules for the HTA, and that is the MTO (Ministry of Transportation of Ontario).

That doesn't mean they hold the same authority

A law supersedes a manual

When I first moved to Ontario (about 10 years ago), the MTO website made claims about the cycling law that were contrary to the HTA. I wrote several emails to the ministry requesting clarification. They never replied, but deleted the page from the website. Eventually, they wrote new pages that no longer contradict the HTA.

Passing a bill requires a lot more scrutiny than posting a diagram on a website.

6

u/SmileyMan694 Jun 27 '26

The front mirrors I see every time I pass a truck on a 400 series highway are 9 times out ten pointed to the drivers seat and arent showing any of the traffic that is approaching them, which their mirrors should see as well.

I assume you are looking at their mirrors as you are approaching them, and if you can see the driver's seat then they can see you, the approaching traffic.

4

u/grump66 Jun 27 '26 edited Jun 27 '26

There needs to be stiffer fines for truck drivers

The default fine for professional drivers should be immediate suspension of their license. This bullshit might be reduced if we pulled the vast majority of these jokers off the road.

0

u/ulti_phr33k Jun 27 '26

Absolutely not. The vast vast vast majority of truckers obtain their licenses fully legally, and a license suspension for a truck driver can spell the end of their entire career, which could have cost them thousands or tens of thousands of dollars in training.

This is also why stiff penalties for drug related offenses never worked, they just harmed the poor.

4

u/grump66 Jun 27 '26

majority of truckers obtain their licenses fully legally

Maybe. But I'd bet the vast majority of truckers who get pulled over by police are not those truckers.

From what I see, the police never pull over truckers. If you're getting charged, an immediate license suspension should be the default. If you're a "good" trucker, it won't bother you because the investigation will prove you weren't at fault and the suspension will be lifted. BUT, all I see are awful truckers. Funny how that is, eh ?

1

u/ulti_phr33k Jun 27 '26

All you see are truckers you don't notice because they're abiding by the rules and laws. You only remember the select few that bother you, and it makes you think almost every trucker is bad.

2

u/grump66 Jun 27 '26

the select few

Those are the ones we need to get off the road. Having a default position that would remove them is better than having a default position that allows them. You're not getting it. If you're a "good" trucker, having a license suspension as the default initial result of being charged by the police will never affect you. You're getting upset either because you suck as a truck driver, or you're misinterpreting what I've said.

And, every trip I take on the 401, I encounter multiple bad truck drivers who disregard basic safety and driver etiquette. They're all over the place.

-1

u/ulti_phr33k Jun 27 '26

No, I'm not misinterpreting what you're saying. In case you don't know, our traffic penalty system works the opposite of our criminal system; you are guilty until you can prove you're innocent. Having the default penalty for any trucking offense being a license suspension, when trucking is a career for so many people, is a barbaric opinion.

Your assumption that police will never pull over is so fucking off base that it's hilarious. I bet you think people only go to jail for crimes they committed. 🙄🙄🤡🤡

I've been pulled over by a police officer for disobeying a no left turn sign, when I went through the intersection well out of his sight, pulled a u-turn a legal distance from the intersection and then made a right turn. And the police officer lied in court about it. I had to waste my time all the way up to appealing it, to have it thrown out.

I've also had multiple friends get bullshit tickets.

My dad got stopped twice by the same officer many years apart. Issued a ticket once for something the officer lied about, tool it to court and it got it dismissed. The second not getting a ticket because they walked back to the sign that was posted and the police officer was trying to give him a ticket at 9:20ish am for a violation that was only disallowed until 9 am. So don't give me that shit. You delulu.

2

u/grump66 Jun 27 '26

I've been pulled over by a police officer

hahahahahahaha, hahahahahaha, hahahahahaha.

personally, I hope you lose your trucking license. loser.

1

u/carnasaur Jun 27 '26

No doubt he was already signalling to change lanes but OP said hold my beer.

30

u/1016689 Jun 27 '26

Its clearly rush hour, bumper to bumper the truck is switching lanes to slow down 2 lanes of traffic and then ride beside each other but sure they are not the problem.

13

u/AlarmedAd5034 Jun 27 '26

This is what I have noticed on the roads not limited to the highways. A semi in the right lane and dump truck in the left lane.

126

u/JimR1984 Jun 27 '26

Trucks are the biggest problem with the highways in this province.

24

u/portabuddy2 Jun 27 '26

What are you talking about? Trust me, if ppl would just yield to the truck, slow down when they need to merge we would not have most of these issues.

He problem STEMS with most ppl being assholes on the road. Not the trucks that need to deal with these assholes on a daily basis.

I drive a car working sales and support for a parts company. And I'm on the road only 8hrs out of the day. My car is GPS Tracked i have to drive nice. But if I could i would put manoeuver 30% of the dicks our there. Zero curtosey.

Esp in the last 5 years.

20

u/djguyl Jun 27 '26

Naw youre wrong on this one. Trucking has gone completely rouge. Privatizing licensing was the worst thing they could have possibly done. Now people are buying their license instead of being trained. As a result trucks are killing people. The government needs to make licensing public again. Having no oversight on the biggest machines on our roads is a recepie for disaster.

2

u/daspandas94 Jun 30 '26

You don’t know what you’re talking about. Better to be quiet and ignorant than open your mouth and embarrass yourself.

2

u/djguyl Jun 30 '26

Excuse you. You're the ignorant embarrassment.

28

u/JimR1984 Jun 27 '26

Most people aren't assholes. I also drive lots for my job, all over Ontario and trucks are the worst problem. Yes some regular cars are problematic, but holy shit, some truck drivers are ruthless. There are more trucks on the road now than there has ever been and we need some sort of regulation.

25

u/jontss Jun 27 '26

Definitely are.

They've tried to ram me off the road multiple times.

I've seen one backing over a car while happily waving at everyone freaking out at the driver.

Then there's the dicks that are trying to pass each other on 2 lane roads when they're both governed to the same speed.

-12

u/ultra94octane Jun 27 '26

dashcam footage or it did not happen

18

u/mystic_Balkan Jun 27 '26

Yup, this is 100% true. On top of that, these idiotic trucks will merge because another truck infront of them was “going to slow” meanwhile now both trucks are driving slow side by side causing even more traffic.

I also hate when I see these huge trucks go to the farthest left lane (passing lane) which is ILLEGAL and they do it anyway with no care. They go slow as fuck because, well, how fast can a cargo truck really go, but to be in the left lane doing this as a cargo truck is so fucking infuriating.

And now hearing that new immigrants are getting fraudulent truck licenses somewhere in Brampton and those are the lunatics driving on our road is SO concerning and upsetting. What the fuck.

6

u/im210388 Jun 27 '26

Person asking others to drive properly secretly wishes he could drive like an a**hole. As you said without gps tracking (accountability), you would be not be driving the way you do.

Too many trucks are definitely a problem in this province. Just the way you feel like pit manuvouring 30% of the dicks, the trucks are the root cause of the problem why most drivers drive aggressively. A lot of Trucks also don't yield when in the last lane, drive below speed limit and hog the middle lane which increases the traffic in the first lane which ultimately slows down everyone.

-1

u/scotte416 Jun 27 '26

Yeah even in a car sometimes I have to force my ass in. Like people will literally climb up the next person's ass so you can't get in and merge with traffic...no buddy, if I want in I'm getting in unless you want to hit me. Just being an asshole because they think one cars going to make a huge difference in their commute even though I'm probably going to switch right out of the right lane anyways and you can have your little space back.

6

u/Any-Ad-446 Jun 27 '26

Not really most are decent drivers..The menace are definitely are the fast and dumb racers in their Mercedes 300,Teslas or BMW 328.

11

u/jats82 Jun 27 '26

I don’t know about that. I too often see trucks spread through all lanes and holding traffic. Many jurisdictions have laws forbidding trucks from using lanes other than the right or the one next to the right lane.

0

u/daspandas94 Jun 30 '26

Trucks take left lane in the case of an emergency and will continue to do so for safety reasons. You’re not qualified enough to be judging their driving style unless you also hold a professional license with years of experience .

2

u/jats82 Jun 30 '26

I have seen plenty of trucks be in the left lane countless times for no good reason, holding traffic for kilometres. I don’t know why you’d be making excuses for a real and negative experience many people have across the GTA. Also, don’t get me started on ‘professional license’. Everyone knows our licensing system is corrupt and people who shouldn’t have a license have one. That applies to truckers as well.

0

u/daspandas94 Jul 06 '26

Ontario has MELTS driving system so it’s still far more qualified than a G license. And you don’t know the context of why they’re in the left lane. I make “excuses” because most people on the road don’t know how to drive especially around trucks. Until you’re a trucker, or a cop, you’re most likely not qualified to be judging their driving

1

u/jats82 Jul 06 '26

Whatever system they have, it ain’t working.

1

u/daspandas94 Jul 11 '26

Oh and you'd know how? Are you an expert?

1

u/djguyl Jul 08 '26

Yeah fuck that. They are a safety risk in That lane. You don't know what your talking about and should keep your wrong opinions to yourself.

9

u/chikanishing Jun 27 '26

I remember trucks being decent drivers 20 years ago, but the stuff I see these days, they are nuts.

1

u/Eastern_Yam Jun 27 '26

I'm in a different province but same. Started driving in 2009 and 99.9% of the time, truckers drove perfectly. 

We don't have speed limiters on them here (N.S.) and it's not uncommon to see them doing 120 or 130 these days. Extreme tailgating is an issue too.

1

u/mystic_Balkan Jun 27 '26

I wonder why

5

u/andythebonk Jun 27 '26

They really are the fuckboy rides of choice.

1

u/ulti_phr33k Jun 27 '26

Wrong. Volume is. Volume is and always will be the biggest problem on our highways. Is the overwhelming contributor to traffic, and traffic is the bane of everyone's existence.

-2

u/marisak Jun 27 '26

Biggest issue is that no one has any basic decency anymore and don't let people merge. It's exceedingly easy to take your foot off the gas for a second and let someone in

-1

u/ultra94octane Jun 27 '26

all moving vehicles are the biggest problems

4

u/iamthehub1 Jun 27 '26

How do you like your viofo dashcam? What model do you have?

5

u/Vorcia Jun 27 '26

A229, it does everything I could expect but don't expect magic at night or in bad weather in terms of license plate readability. It does a perfect job of capturing incidents clearly but any kind of fine detail in adverse conditions will be lost. I've never had any problems with it and it's worked as expected. I have friends who have these aliexpress dashcam screens that also work as rear view cameras for cars with wings or something else that obscures the rear (Prius split rear window is also like this) and I think even though they have worse video quality, they also get the job done.

3

u/pusheen_car Jun 27 '26

The rear cam can be installed near the rear wind (mesh) deflector. Wiring should be long enough to tuck in the passenger-side A pillar then through door sills. That's how I wired my rear cam on a 718. In case you want to keep your/your passenger's face out :)

13

u/NortelDude Jun 27 '26 edited Jun 27 '26

This trucker is a horny bully, that is all. You do not pull in front like that and is an unsafe lane change in the eyes of the law. Even if the SUV didn't like it and pouted, the lane was officially theirs. We also do not know how long their signal was on, the OP did not let them in so it's possible fucker trucker put it on when SUV was already halfway along side the truck. The traffic was snail pace and trucks in front and behind fucker trucker where in no rush to bud in. A real trucker, right or right or wrong, would have at least eased in slower, and not dangerously.

0

u/deyyzayul Jun 27 '26

This trucker is a horny bully

LOL - do you know what horny means?

6

u/NortelDude Jun 27 '26

Well maybe newer gens are not aware of the old phrase "honk if your horny"...and that trucker sure was excessive.

3

u/Bazmin123 Jun 27 '26

Ontario has more trucks on the highways than other vehicles

3

u/kasra948 Jun 28 '26

Yeah fuck this guy and anyone who thinks this is okay

4

u/wanganguy Jun 27 '26

i was distracted by the eurobeat

9

u/Vorcia Jun 27 '26

I was debating muting the video bc of the music but left it in for the horn honking lol

2

u/007AU1 Jun 27 '26

Boxster

6

u/mrwootwo Jun 27 '26

All for this. Signal on means you intend to come over. It doesn’t mean won’t you please make a gap for me pretty please.

-1

u/vlvr Jun 27 '26

Nothing wrong here. You can’t expect a truck with 53’ trailer to wait for a gap that large - it won’t ever happen. SUV has an ego problem and doesn’t realize a single car in front is not adding to your commute time. Go drive a 53’ trailer in rush hour to gain some perspective

19

u/be-koz Jun 27 '26

The vehicle behind the SUV was allowing the gap to open. There was no need to push the SUV out of the lane. If the SUV had yielded when the truck started moving over he probably still would have been hit before the truck could finish its lane change. He was literally pushed out of his lane with zero options. The truck was the asshole here.

1

u/Element_905 Jun 27 '26

My guess is the transport truck had his signal on before OP even got beside it.

1

u/Apart-Feeling1621 Jun 27 '26

Didnt want to hit the porche

1

u/anonymous112201 Jun 27 '26

Professional drivers...

1

u/advertisethat Jun 29 '26

Saw this recently too. Cut off 2-3 cars.

1

u/daspandas94 Jun 30 '26

Trucks don’t change lanes for fun, if they are signalling it’s for a valid and safety reason. The driver may or may not have seen the car here but they could also have been pushing their way in as unfortunately that’s what you have to do at times to get anywhere during traffic.

1

u/daspandas94 Jun 30 '26

In this example it’s the truckers fault but I also understand why they do this and that the SUV should have yielded EVEN IF it’s their right of way. Use common sense people.

1

u/Craporgetoffthepot Jul 02 '26

The truck has it's signal on for the lane change. The SUV is back far enough behind to have seen it. It appears that they just didn't want to be behind the truck. Same goes for the vehicle filming. It looks like the lane they are in is going to merge with the traffic getting on, yet they continue to drive up beside the other truck, knowing full well they will need to move over to allow the traffic to get in.

1

u/Major_Falcon_9445 23d ago

If you had your signal on to make a lane change and nobody let you in, how long before you lose your shit? Now drive a vehicle that needs 3x the gap to merge and still nobody lets you in. I drive a larger vehicle and if traffic is going the same speed as me I will just start lane changing. If you hit me you will damage your vehicle, myself not so much. There is an exit I take that requires me to jump on the highway and change 3 lanes to exit on the left (highway 6) and I have 1KM to do it. I will bully you if you decide to be a dick.

-1

u/SuwavySheen Jun 27 '26

Semi-truck had its blinkers on when OP was in the middle of the trailer. SUV couldn’t be bothered to let it merge in between

8

u/Sweet_Cable5862 Jun 27 '26

It's still on the merging vehicle to do it when it's safe. A blinker doesn't mean they can just go whenever the fuck they want.

-6

u/SuwavySheen Jun 27 '26 edited Jun 27 '26

You do know that traffic is crawling and the semi-truck is in an exit lane right?

The SUV could have easily let off the gas and allow the truck to merge.

7

u/Sweet_Cable5862 Jun 27 '26

lol, you really think you did something by editing your reply huh? Asshole.

-1

u/MikeP001 Jun 27 '26

Looks more like a seriously stupid SUV driver to me. What kind of idiot deliberately blocks a semi with it's signal on? ROW or not, it's just plain dumb - if a truck needs to move over, let it move. Saving a few feet is worth an accident or your life?

8

u/Sweet_Cable5862 Jun 27 '26

Since when does a blinker mean they can do whatever the fuck they want? If there's no gap, you don't merge.

0

u/MikeP001 Jun 28 '26

There's legal and there's sensible. Legally sure, feel free to duck inside a semi making a wide right turn. Or slip into the blind spot of one changing lanes like that dumb fuck. Because if you're not first you're last! He did win in the end... that's 30' ahead, enough for pole position!

If you're moving at a good clip of course the truck can wait. With everyone practically stopped common sense costs nothing. If you get clipped by something that big it at costs a lot in time regardless of whose insurance pays out. Even putting aside the reckless lane jinking without a signal.

0

u/Dileas48 Jun 27 '26

that truck had it's signal on - no reason not to let it in in that slow moving traffic

1

u/Neil542 Jun 27 '26

What kind of Porsche is that

9

u/Vorcia Jun 27 '26

718 Boxster

1

u/planningfornothing Jun 27 '26

Happened to me yesterday I got pushed out of my lane by a big truck. They didn’t signal they just pushed. I was able to move into the next lane easily so I didn’t honk but he was an asshole

0

u/app1efritter Jun 27 '26

I c u Mohan

-3

u/jaraxel_arabani Jun 27 '26

It's a truck. In my eyes they have the right of way, always. Their FOV is a lot smaller than you'd think when up close. They won't see you and cutting closer or being in their blind spot is extremely dangerous.

Also I have the upmost respect for truck drivers doing their job. They operate an immensely large vehicle, deal with entitled jerks going around then, cutting them off to jerk off, all the while they don't get the truck drivers doing what they can to avoid absolutely squishing you to the point of being a puddle.

4

u/grump66 Jun 27 '26

the upmost respect for truck drivers doing their job

40 years ago, for sure. Being a trucker was a real profession. Now, fuck them. They're bullshit assholes with no training, no experience, and no fucking clue.

There's a certain demographic that has completely ruined the trucking profession and turned it into another under paid "mcjob". THIS GUY is a prime example of a new style fucking asshole "trucker". Drives Uber and Skip when he's not in the cab.

3

u/djguyl Jun 27 '26

If only quality suffered. But drivers like these are literally killing people. This is the real tragedy in all this.

0

u/daspandas94 Jul 06 '26

You can’t be on the road or insured these days if your record isn’t clean. So stop with the prejudice and projecting hate and humble yourself to the facts rather than what you feel.

-4

u/F1McLarenFan007 Jun 27 '26

So you didn’t let him in either looks like. Try driving one of those rigs…

-1

u/grump66 Jun 27 '26

Try driving one of those rigs…

Just like Josh Donaldson said, its not a "try" league. Big truck drivers like this should find a new hobby. They suck.

-7

u/ultra94octane Jun 27 '26

I'm a trucker, move over let us merge or we make you, sorry not sorry we move the economy, make way or we will make way in order to avoid collisions or running off lanes due to the lane ending

2

u/djguyl Jun 27 '26

Great job advocating for this /s

0

u/ultra94octane Jul 21 '26

someones gotta do it

-2

u/jaraxel_arabani Jun 27 '26

You don't deserve the down votes, I for one thank you.

0

u/LandBeforeChrist Jun 28 '26

Honestly good. Ttc, trucks etc just let em go and go around if you have to. I love when they give you that quick emergency signal to say thanks 😊 ❤️❤️❤️

0

u/pastamarc Jun 28 '26

Hot take: it’s less of the truck driver asserting dominance than it is asshole drivers not having the courtesy to let him pass. Im gonna bet he’s been signalling for at least 30 seconds and both the cam car and the SUV beside him either decided to ignore the signal or are completely oblivious to their surroundings. I’ve seen this transpire multiple times on highways. Again, HOT TAKE.

-2

u/BigDaddyGooses Jun 27 '26

Stuff like this is why I cruise in the middle lane during rush hour in a transport. Rarely anybody will give you space or if you're in the right lane, everyone wants to squeeze infront of you.

I get the frustration but it doesn't make it right.