G37xS-Life

Have anyone had experiences in filing damage claims with their city due to vehicle damage sustained with uneven road surface repairs?

I may have damaged my tires due to uneven road surface (3-4 inch drop/elevation) while on the highway this morning. I do not think there was any vehicle body damage, but just in case I find some at a later time, have anyone had experience dealing with such sort of events?

Please see video on this link:
Potential tire damage with attached picture.

NealP

Sorry, I think you're out of luck. If you show them this video they are going to see that you were going over the posted speed limit. The sign looks like it says 55 and you were going 76 at the first bump then about 55 at the second. They are going to say that bump signs were posted and barrels were present and ask why you didn't slow down. Was there was a road work sign with a lower speed limit posted prior to this video?

G37xS-Life

The first bump was not the problem and I admit at the first bump I was over the speed limit. However, that was the speed of traffic at the time and I am not going to be the only vehicle going at 55mph when everyone else is going 65-70+ mph. By being the only vehicle going at 55mph when everyone else is 15-20mph faster, I can actually cause accidents as well.

Despite the speed at the initial bump, tt was the "second" one that made such an impact. At that point, I was going 55-56mph.

No signs whatsoever were posted prior and if the city would like video proof of that, I have the entire hour-long dash cam video available for them to watch.

My take is that had there been signs, and I did not slow down, that is all on me (no one else to blame). However, there were no signs and if you look at the vehicle directly ahead of me and to the right ahead, even they started braking suddenly. In addition, the barrels to the left were present from first bump and ends at last bump. I cannot slow down fast enough without risking the guy behind me not slowing down in time and ending up rear-ending me.

Black Betty

iTrader: (60)

There appears to be a sign on the right side of the road (where the white SUV is stopped on the shoulder) where you hit the big bump that says "BUMP". Also, you were driving way too fast in a construction zone no matter what the posted speed or the speed of other drivers. You were going 76 when you first encountered the uneven pavement and didn't slow down until it was too late. This is on you.

There's no recourse that you have unless there is gross negligence on the part of the construction crew. In this case there's not any. There are road construction signs. You were speeding. You're out of luck. The LAST thing you want to do is try to use this video as any evidence of someone else's liability for the damage.

G37xS-Life

Hello BB. Thanks! Well, you have point there. I guess my point of confusion was that, there were no signs of construction prior to that initial bump and even that sign was 20 feet before the first bump. To slow down and risk the guy behind me rear-ending me at that rate of speed and without adequate posted notice by the city is not safe at all.

While I admit I am wrong going at that speed, had there been posted signs of construction, I am sure everyone else on the road (including myself) would have slowed down way prior to the initial bump. All drivers (including myself) on that section of the road only started braking after the initial bump.

Black Betty

iTrader: (60)

Keep in mind that a part of my job responsibility as a safety professional for almost 25 years involves driver training when I say this. Most drivers think they are pretty good drivers, but aren't necessarily.

There are a ton of factors involved. Usually when a driver stated that they couldn't do X because of how it would affect other drivers, it is because they are failing to drive defensively or not being observant enough. I'm not disparaging you, I'm explaining why I view this the way I do. If you can't take an action that you need to take to drive safely because another driver is too close, or because you didn't have enough space/time, etc., that usually means that you were not driving with enough attention to your surroundings and not creating adequate space to safely operate your vehicle. You can even control the space behind you to an extent to put yourself in a position where you don't have to be reacting to other drivers. What another driver does typically should not cause you to have to take emergency action, or else they're really driving your vehicle not you.

If you only saw the sign warning of the bump when you were to close to it to take any action on it before hitting the bump, you aren't paying close enough attention to your driving. You are supposed to see road signs and take action on them BEFORE you reach them. Looking 15 seconds ahead of your position rather than just beyond your front bumper, or having your driving dictated by the tail lights of the car ahead because you are too close is your fault.

As an example, the car ahead of you in your lane braked for about 8 seconds prior to going over that bump.

I'm not going to go into the who Smith System 5 keys of driving here. But I don't see that there was anything wrong with the road or the signage that put you in a bad situation. Just my opinion.

As far as tire damage, it'll be hard to tell by looking at it if any real damage has been done unless it has a cut or a bubble which I can't see in your photos.

FlashGuy

I-94 is state juisdiction.

That and all its implications aside, I've driven over that exact spot at prevailing speeds with no issues.

G37xS-Life

BB, I like how you break it down. It puts things in perspective from a professional's point of view.

In terms of tire damage, I can't see any either, but I guess only time will tell. I highly doubt there is any suspension damage as well. Then again, I am replacing my shocks to FA500 coilovers once it arrives and the front and rear camber arms with SPL parts. I guess I will look at it more thoroughly at that point.

G37xS-Life

The I-94 is actually a very nice and well maintained road. I driven it probably thousands of times in the last 4-6 years. It was just this morning that the section had such a huge drop/elevation.


QUOTE=FlashGuy;4136247]I-94 is state juisdiction.

That and all its implications aside, I've driven over that exact spot at prevailing speeds with no issues.[/QUOTE]

Kris9884

iTrader: (3)

I wont comment on who gets the blame since that's not your question

I had the city pay for two new wheels/tires and an alignment when part of a curb was broken off on a merging lane. It was very easy to be honest.

I was merging onto the highway and the curb on the far outside was broken up and these big 5-6" chunks of concrete were just sitting off towards the side. They pretty much came out of nowhere and I hit them on the outside of my passenger tires and blew them out immediately. This was on my daily driver Acura TL, if it was the lowered G, it would have been far worse. I pulled over with two flats and two bent wheels. I took pictures of the damage to my car and the curb. Had my roadside service tow my car to Acura and got an estimate. I then called the department of transportation (MoDot) for my state and let them know what happened. I emailed the estimate and pictures to the gal on the phone and they mailed me a check that same week. They seemed to have a whole procedure for this as I'm sure they get complaints about pot holes and things all of the time. It was pretty straight forward.

BTW, they must have fixed it over night because when I drove through there in the G the next day it was all fixed.

Good luck!

G37xS-Life

Thanks Kris9884. Your information will be helpful should my tires start to bubble or can't hold pressure in the near future.

In terms of who is at fault (thanks for not judging )

BB had some good points as well. When I saw the car in front of me brake about 8-9 seconds prior to the second bump, I started braking as well (hence the increase in my distance from car in front). However, the guy behind me who was about 50ft away suddenly became less than 7-10ft away. I could not slow down any further without risking the guy behind me rear-ending me should he not be able to stop in time. After the second bump, I sped up and passed the car to my right and switched into their lane since the car that was originally behind me at this point was about 5 ft away. Better awareness of the back is the lesson that I learned today.

I am just glad no visible damages were sustained on my car from what I can tell, no accidents occured due to this unforeseen event and no one was hurt. Everyone gets to go home.

FlashGuy

Oh I know exactly what you mean. I've driven over that same section of road during construction. They're doing the same peel and resurface construction between Dempster and Old Orchard. Not an absolute but, those bumps feel worse than they really are. I doubt you will have damage from that. I daily my car in the city proper and the craters in the loop would put these to shame.

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JSolo

iTrader: (14)

Thanks for the heads up. Travel that section occasionally. I'll usually crawl over bad rail road tracks, even if the guy next to me wants to fly through at speed limit+20. It is true, can't slow down enough if the @sshole behind is intimate with your bumper. Probably best to be in the far right lane then ¿?

Black Betty

iTrader: (60)

I'm glad you took it as constructive criticism and not as a personal attack. That's how it was intended. As another poster mentioned interstate highways are a federal DOT issue but maintenance is delegated to the state not the city or county.

G37xS-Life

Hey BB. Your input is always great. Constructive criticisms are the best and learning from experiences are second to none. In my field of work, there is no playing the blaming game. When we mess up, patients die. Thanks for your input and for sharing your professional observation.