22:05, an Unlit Bicycle, and a Dispatcher Who Says 'Report Tomorrow'
At 22:05 in light rain a medium truck (gross 6.2 t, running empty) travelling at about 45 km/h in a 50 km/h zone strikes a cyclist who came out of a side street on the left into the truck's path. The cyclist is on the road, conscious but confused, bleeding from a scalp wound, with the left forearm bent at an unnatural angle. There is no helmet, and the bicycle's rear lamp was unlit.
The truck has stopped 9 m beyond the point of impact, hazard lamps on. No oncoming traffic, but a lit bus stop 30 m ahead and a convenience store with a camera. The driver's phone is at 11%. The dispatcher's last message reads: 'If it's minor, finish the run and report tomorrow morning.'
1. Give the driver's legal duties in the correct order, with the reason for each, and state what 'immediately' means at each step.
Read the worked answer
These are the duties of 道路交通法第72条 (救護義務 and 報告義務).
- Stop immediately - done, 9 m past impact.
- Prevent further danger (危険防止措置): hazard lamps, warning triangle behind the truck, get the cyclist out of the traffic lane only if leaving him there is more dangerous than moving him, wave traffic past.
- Rescue and aid (救護義務): attend to the injured person at once. This is the duty that overrides everything else in the scenario.
- Report to police, without delay - 110, giving time, place, number and condition of casualties, load, and circumstances. For an injury accident this must be immediate; the 24-hour window applies only to property-damage-only accidents reported later at a police station.
- Call 119 for an ambulance, in parallel, not after.
Then notify the operator. The dispatcher's 'report tomorrow' cannot defer steps 3 and 4: failure to report is a separate offence, and no employer instruction is a defence.
2. What first aid should the driver give, and what should he deliberately not do?
Read the worked answer
Do: introduce himself, keep talking to the cyclist, and have someone call 119 while he stays with him. Apply firm direct pressure to the scalp wound with clean gauze or a clean cloth - scalp wounds bleed heavily and look worse than they are. Keep the head and neck still and support them in the position found. Immobilise the forearm as it lies, using a sling or a padded support, without straightening it. Cover him against the rain and cold, since wet and cold worsen shock. Watch breathing and consciousness and note the time of any change to hand to the ambulance crew.
Do not: move him unless there is an immediate danger such as fire or traffic; try to set or straighten the arm; pull out anything embedded; give food or drink; apply a tourniquet to a scalp wound; leave him alone to 'sort out the paperwork'. A truck-versus-cyclist impact carries a real chance of spinal injury, and the confusion he is showing may be concussion rather than shock. Everything the driver does at this point should assume the neck is unstable.
3. How should he handle the vehicle's position, the scene evidence, and the dispatcher's instruction?
Read the worked answer
Vehicle position. The 9 m stopping distance is evidence of speed and reaction time. Leave the truck where it is unless it blocks traffic dangerously; if it must be moved, photograph the position first, mark the tyres and the impact point, then move it. Do not tidy the scene.
Evidence. Photograph skid marks, debris, the unlit bicycle lamp and the road surface; note the time; identify the bus-stop witnesses and ask the convenience store to preserve its camera footage, since such recordings are often overwritten within days.
The instruction. The dispatcher's message should be declined in plain terms and the refusal recorded. Reporting is a statutory duty owed by the driver; a company instruction to defer it converts a traffic accident into an additional offence and can amount to evidence of concealment. After the police report, notify the operator so the accident can be reported under 自動車事故報告規則 to the 地方運輸局 within the required period, and preserve the 運行記録 and tachograph data. He should also not post about the incident, and should write his own account while it is fresh.