THE terrifying moment an HGV driver overtakes three cars on a snow-covered two-lane road in the pitch dark has been caught on a dashcam.
The shocking footage, filmed on the A1 near the border between England and Scotland, opens with cars cautiously heading north amid snow and wind.
But then an articulated lorry thunders past, overtaking all three cars, and taking at least 20 seconds before returning to the correct lane.
The clip was filmed early on Friday morning when blizzard conditions and freezing temperatures gripped much of the UK.
Later the same day, the film was uploaded to YouTube with the caption “Mental Stobart’s driver”.
The description states: “Heavy snow and this idiot passes the vehicles doing 30mph. Watch the speed he passes. Excuse my language.”
The incident happened on a two-lane stretch of the A1 near Belford, about 30 miles south of the border, as the cars and lorry headed towards Scotland.
Although the road is relatively quiet, vehicles are seen passing in the other direction, causing a flurry of snow to fly up and momentarily cover the windscreen of the car filming the footage.
Then the lights of the HGV – painted in the colours of Eddie Stobart – come into shot.
The white van in front of the dashcam car moves to the left slightly to give the HGV space as it passes the cars in front.
The A1 is the main road route between Edinburgh and Newcastle and yet, despite the heavy traffic, remains two lanes for much of the 120 miles between the major cities.
The road has become notorious for serious road accidents. In February 2015, the road was shut for five hours following a serious crash near the Belford services.
Earlier that year, a pensioner was killed after a two-vehicle collision near Northumberland on the road.
And a 44-year-old man died after a crash between a van and a car on the road earlier in the same year.
Driving experts were quick to slam the “reckless” actions of the HGV driver.
Jack Kushner, spokesman for Brake, the road safety charity, said: “This footage is deeply concerning and shows the type of reckless driving that can, and regularly does, lead to collisions and deaths on the road.
“Overtaking on a single carriageway road is one of the most dangerous and often unnecessary manoeuvres drivers can perform.
“It is particularly concerning to see such dangerous driving in wintry conditions – ice and snow have a major impact on stopping distances, and it is essential that drivers are extra cautious in the winter months.
“Too many drivers seem to believe that their journey is more important than the safety of other road users, and it is vital that roads police forces are given the resources they need to prevent this dangerous driving behaviour.”
A spokesman for The AA said: “This is an extremely risky manoeuvre – icy conditions, poor visibility and a single carriageway road.
“Had another vehicle appeared or pulled out of a side turning even at some distance away, an application of the brakes could have spelled disaster.
“The truck driver – and those he is overtaking – is fortunate in that the road is straight but of course snowy conditions like this can lead to disorientation and losing track of your location.
“This impatience is at best highly irresponsible and little short of madness.
“This astounding overtaking manoeuvre will have only reduced his journey time by a mere minutes, if that; given the conditions.
“He could equally likely not have arrived at all – and have caused others not to arrive at their respective destinations, either.”
Eddie Stobart today (TUE) revealed the driver of the HGV was from an agency and had been banned.
An Eddie Stobart spokesman said: “We continually review our performance and this driver has subsequently been banned from working for us.
“We can assure members of the public we always take prompt action following any reports of incidents such as this.
“We take health and safety very seriously. All Eddie Stobart drivers are trained to the highest standards and we expect the same from any contracted agency drivers, which this was.”
