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That's a bad one. (Ksrtc again) This is their usual driving style, just that this time the Xylo seems to have approached in good speed as well and locked up.
But the Ksrtc driver survives, like always for another day.

KSRTC bus crossed the double line while trying to overtake the white car, which was turning into church .

On seeing the Xylo, the bus driver tried to get back into his lane and already started applying the brakes. (this is more clear if video is slowed down to 0.25x).

It was less than 2 secs from when Xylo entered the frame and hit the bus. At the time of impact, bus driver already started moving back into his lane. But XYLO , from the time it entered the frame , it kept going in straight line till it hit the bus.

XYLO was driven much faster than the bus and hence Xylo driver didn't have enough reaction time to slow or turn away. Atleast, if he managed to turn along the curve of road, he would have brushed the bus in the worst case or avoided it in best case. Instead, he may have been transfixed and drove straight into bus, it didn't look like he tried to slow down either.


Bus driver can't be blamed fully here, he did do mistake. But, Bus didn't hit the Xylo , Xylo hit the bus with much larger momentum which pushed the bus off its track and eventually bus hit the church wall.

So, the larger part of the blame lies with XYLO driver who was driving much faster and failed to adjust his direction away from collision.

At the end , it is compounding effect of all the multiple mistakes that led to the accident. Had either of these drivers been more sensible, accident would have been avoided.

That double yellow line is there for a reason. This puts the KSRTC driver solely responsible for the accident. This is an S curve, so both the approaching vehicles will have limited visibility. The mistake by the Xylo driver was the lack of defensive driving - not expecting the unexpected. As one can see the Xylo driver braked as soon as the vehicle is in frame and skids for a good distance.

Here is a higher resolution video.

https://youtu.be/wEhQx1Vm7xs

Xylo was faster than the bus, just its not a fault, could be the natural speed for a LMV on that road. I think the 2 cars parked on the left (of course they are outside of the line), and being a curve made the Xylo spot the bus a tad too late. He slams the brakes, and the wheels lock and couldn't steer to stay in his lane and rammed the bus. You can see the skid marks left behind. Likely the Xylo was a non-ABS version. ABS could have saved the accident here.

The KSRTC driver has faltered on many counts. Crossing the double lane, that too on a curve. The Xylo driver's reaction and locked wheels helplessly made him cross double lane and then the impact.

Completely and utterly disagree. IMHO this argument is totally without merit.
Whether he swerved back into his lane or not, at the time of impact, the bus was encroaching into opposite lane. Xylo was within his lane.
Xylo was too fast to manage the curve without understeering. The Xylo driver, instead of using steering to swerve away, used his brakes instead, expecting to slow it down, and give time to the bus to finish his evasive manouver. But the 'xylo's inability to swerve away' is not the root cause of the accident, it's the bus encroaching into opposite lane. Have no doubts about this.

Just imagine what would have happened had the bus been in his lane, and both vehicles continued at speed ? The xylo would have understeered, kissed the double yellow line, and come back into his lane and gone. Same with the bus, there wouldn't have been any contact, despite both vehicles having poor dynamics.

Another day, another KSTRC bus accident.
Not just ksrtc, but most government bus drivers don't have a tinge of respect for others on road, since they're a government employee, it gives them a thought that they own the entire road and we're all under their mercy .

There are many unemployed youngsters who can be employed in place of unfit / incompetent public bus drivers.

Basic rule of driving - never overtake when you don't have a clear vision of the oncoming traffic. Bus drivers usually attempt dangerous overtakes without slightest of fear and ton of arrogance that the oncoming traffic will reduce speed /stop for them . Why the heck should I reduce speed /stop when I have no obstruction infront of me in my lane ( unless an ambulance or an emergency vehicle is in my opposite lane) , I have right in that lane, you can overtake, once you pass me.

In a panic situation, your reflex should be spot on, poor xylo driver did his best, but he could've steered to his left more but again there are two cars parked to his left, I sympathise with the xylo driver, zero fault on him.

Bus drivers driving license should be canceled, at least that would make other arrogant bus drivers a bit more cautious on road. There are 50+ souls on board trusting you, you have got to drive as defensively as possible, not like an F1 racer, overtaking at corners.

Bigger vehicle is naturally blamed in an accident. In this case also, most probably KSRTC driver will be decided the culprit even in court.

However, I stand by my views.
Both the drivers are at fault. KSRTC driver triggered the chain reaction by crossing double line. XYLO driver was overspeeding and was not able to control the vehicle at this spot.

Had any of these two fatal mistakes not happened, this accident wouldn't have happened.

My take away from the video is that Bus didn't hit XYLO, XYLO hit the bus because of the speed it carried.
On any another day, there may be a vehicle suddenly stranded in a curve for whatever reason. If another vehicle enters this curve at high speed and hits the blocking vehicle, the higher fault lies with the second vehicle.
If not this bus, there could be a pedestrian crossing the road before this church . If this XYLO driver carries this much momentum into the curve , he could end up crashing into pedestrian or some other vehicle coming in opposite direction because of 'locked brakes' or 'understeer'. Will the major fault then lie with the pedestrian who crossed the road where he should n't have crossed? Maybe, but could the accident been avoided? Yes, if the XYLO driver was driving within the limits of his vehicle and his control ability.

An accident can be due to a chain of errors no doubt.

However as per rules (link), the presence of solid double yellow lines on the road "strictly prohibits anybody from crossing over into the lane with traffic going in the opposite direction"
The bus driver 100% at fault based on the rules.

The legal speed limits for motor cars on a state highway road in Kerala (as per MVD website) is 80kph. Let’s assume this is not, even then the speed limit is 70kph for 2-lane roads outside municipal limits (which this place is).

Does it look like the car is going above 80kph? Do we have sufficient evidence to suggest so?

I’m not sure based on what data you allege that the car was overspeeding which seems to be the basis for putting some fault on the car.

You can bring in a million possibilities of how the accident could’ve transpired in “what if” scenarios. But none of them applies because we have a specific case here. We have seen what happened.

The bus broke the rule, encroached into the lane, the car panic braked and locked wheels, crashing into the encroached bus.

100% fault lies with the bus here.

Your comparison doesn’t make sense. A mammoth bus hurling towards you on opposite lane is NOT equal to a “stranded vehicle” or “pedestrian “ or a “cow” etc.. Your response and reactions changes with respect to that. Look closely the video, the bus is 100% at fault, period! And being a KSRTC, I personally as well, no doubts about that. :)

Haha, I wonder how the reactions would be , had bus not been KSRTC . KSRTC has become notorious and naturally biasing the opinions. I don't need a speedgun to understand that Xylo is over speeding. Xylo is at a speed which could not be controlled in emergency, that's enough to prove fatal for it.
If I were to be in place of XYLO driver , I would have driven slower within the limits of the vehicle am driving and my control capability. The arguments of what came in front , what crossed what - comes only after that. Period.

To each their own, but the critical part as to what the others are trying to say is that unless we call out the explicit fault of the KSRTC bus driver who has crossed those yellow double lines, we would have more drivers and their utter ignorance of the yellow double line concept committing more accidents.

And god forbid, even if one were driving safely well within the speed limits within the correct lane, it just takes one driver like that KSRTC driver and one well intentioned but poorly informed gentleman like you, who do not see the grave mistake that has been committed; to recreate this very same ghastly accident.

TLDR: Go as slow as you will, your safety and life still depends on the moron in the opposite lane and his basic road rule knowledge.

Looking at the video it appears Xylo was also being driven by an Ex or Off duty KSRTC driver :)

Hope everyone is safe. KSRTC bus hitting that gate and the way it crashed all over the bus, I could not help but rl: Feel sorry for the passengers and that beautiful gate.

Xylo was not overspeeding. The other car which crossed, was having similar speed as that of Xylo.

The fault on XYLOs part was, that it did not swerve. In the near miss thread, a video of two tempos was shared recently. When a tempo can swerve to avoid a hit, this car surely can. Also remembering a video where a biker jammed in front of a fast truck and the truck driver went in the oncoming lane to avoid a hit. All came out unscathed consequently.

If you watch closely, Xylo also crossed the yellow line. So the mistake is on both sides. Yes the KSRTC was doing an offensive driving. But there was absolutely no defense from the Xylo except trying to brake.