Incredible near-miss on Kaimai Ranges caught on dash cam

Thursday, 11 August 2016

The moment two vehicles nearly collide was caught on camera.

A motorist caught on dash-cam footage in a scary near miss on the Kaimai Ranges could face dangerous driving charges.

Hamilton truck driver Kevin Burton was driving his 43-tonne truck over the ranges from Tauranga on Wednesday night when the drama unfolded in front of him.

Travelling in the downhill lane towards Hamilton was a silver four-wheel drive.

It pulled out to overtake a stock-feed truck travelling in the slow lane, but misjudged the call and ran out of room.

* Serious crash on State Highway 29, Bay of Plenty

* The problem on New Zealand roads is 'a lack of respect for etiquette'**

The ute attempted to make the pass, crossing the double yellow lines into the path of an oncoming ute.

The ute slid through the narrow gap between the stock-feed truck and the oncoming ute, taking out the opposing wing mirrors of both utes. Debris can be seen flying behind.

'Immediately I thought, these guys are going to hit,' Burton said. 'You can see the shrapnel from the mirrors come off.'

Waikato road policing Sergeant Phil Ruddell said the cars came within 15cm of a serious or fatal crash.

'It was potentially catastrophic for a number of people - it is sad to see there are still drivers out there willing to take risks such as this.

'It amazes me.'

If police can identify the driver, they will look to press charges, he said.

'Certainly there are some clear offences.'

These include not keeping left of a double passing lane, and possibly dangerous driving, Ruddell said.

Reading the comments on the video posted online, Ruddell said it was clear this was not a one-off incident on this stretch of road.

'It seems professional drivers who drive this route every day see this kind of driving behaviour on regular occasions, which is dismaying.'

Burton agreed.

'We see it on a daily basis, at the end of passing lanes, on mergers - I have seen three near-misses today.

'Kiwis can't drive.'

Accelerating to gain a minute or two is not worth losing a life, Burton said.

'Trucks are heavier now and they are longer now - they are up to 50 tonne, so it takes a lot longer to get past us. That tiny gap disappears in a couple of seconds.'

Ruddell urged people who saw the ute or are able to identify it to contact their local police station.

'If we see it, we will deal with it, but we rely on the eyes of the public to report this to us.'

With 202 people already dead from road crashes this year, Ruddell said it was crazy people still risked their lives.

'We urge patience over lunacy.'

Anyone who sees bad driving should report it via the *555 line.