A SHOCKING video shows the moment a white van driver barged an HGV off a packed dual carriageway.
The incident happened as vehicles tailgated each other on the Edinburgh city bypass during the rush hour.
The van driver fails to notice that traffic ahead is braking and swerves to avoid a collision – crashing into the side of an HGV.
The HGV is pushed out of the slow lane and on to the edge of the road but the driver manages to stay in control.
The dopey van driver was captured on another motorist’s dashcam on April 26 at about 6.25 in the morning.
In the clip, cars can be seen putting on the brakes as they spot traffic ahead. A white van is then shown in the distance, in front of another van, slamming on the brakes late – narrowly avoiding hitting the car ahead.
But instead, the van driver abruptly pulls the steering wheel to the left resulting in the vehicle crashing straight into the side of a lorry travelling along the inside lane.
The lorry ends up being forced into the slip road before the white van finally stops in its tracks – while surrounded by other vehicles.
The lorry is then shown slowing down in the distance before the clip cuts out.
Road safety campaigners have branded the driver a “fool” and said they are lucky they didn’t cause a serious accident.
Neil Greig, Director of Policy and Research at IAMRoadsmart said: “Crashes cause more delays than roadworks so driving safely gets us all where we want to go quicker.
“This van driver needs to get his driving skills refreshed as well as any charges being brought against him.
“There is no room for error on the A720 so you need to leave as much room as possible and expect the worst. Drivers like this are clearly willing to provide it!”
A spokesman for SWD Media, who obtained the footage, said: “Thankfully this collision was not as serious as it could have been.
“Unfortunately tailgating is a serious issue we still experience regularly on the roads.
“As the saying goes, only a fool, breaks the two-second rule and it’s true!
“At 70mph your braking distance is at least 96 metres, 315ft or 24 car lengths – and this increases depending on the weather and road conditions.
“Hopefully a lesson has been learned here and the driver will keep a safe distance from the vehicle in front.”
Brian O’Donnell, who captured the footage on his dashcam on April 26 this year, said: “Traffic came to a stand still, he must of not seen it and swerved to avoid the car in front of him but hit the lorry instead.”
Police Scotland said they were unaware of the incident so could not provide comment.
