1 00:00:02,002 --> 00:00:03,003 - [Narrator] Buckle up and hold your breath. 2 00:00:03,136 --> 00:00:05,606 You've just detoured into a world of peril. 3 00:00:07,007 --> 00:00:10,244 Danger awaits around every hairpin turn high in the Andes. 4 00:00:11,645 --> 00:00:12,946 - There is no room for mistakes. 5 00:00:13,080 --> 00:00:15,782 It is completely unforgiving. 6 00:00:15,916 --> 00:00:17,084 - [Narrator] And on the deadliest 7 00:00:17,217 --> 00:00:19,319 six mile ribbon of asphalt on earth, 8 00:00:19,453 --> 00:00:21,588 (bomb blasts) 9 00:00:21,722 --> 00:00:24,658 beware the fog and avalanches. 10 00:00:24,791 --> 00:00:26,894 - There's really no second chances up here. 11 00:00:27,027 --> 00:00:28,595 - [Narrator] But if it's thrills you after 12 00:00:28,729 --> 00:00:30,464 punch that accelerator. 13 00:00:30,597 --> 00:00:32,733 - Trust me, there's a ton of adrenaline 14 00:00:32,866 --> 00:00:33,967 going through your body. 15 00:00:34,067 --> 00:00:35,469 - [Narrator] It's too late for a U-turn. 16 00:00:35,602 --> 00:00:38,772 Now you are traveling the world's most dangerous drives 17 00:00:38,906 --> 00:00:40,207 on "Modern Marvels." 18 00:00:40,340 --> 00:00:42,843 (upbeat music) 19 00:00:56,657 --> 00:01:00,027 A grim reality exists every time you get behind the wheel. 20 00:01:01,562 --> 00:01:03,964 Any road can suddenly become deadly. 21 00:01:06,667 --> 00:01:10,003 The next drive you take could be your last, 22 00:01:10,137 --> 00:01:14,408 whether it's road design, the elements or other drivers. 23 00:01:16,677 --> 00:01:19,313 All it takes is one false move. 24 00:01:20,814 --> 00:01:22,582 One of the most dangerous roads of all 25 00:01:22,716 --> 00:01:25,352 of according to many experts lies in Bolivia. 26 00:01:26,219 --> 00:01:27,521 Part of a highway system 27 00:01:27,654 --> 00:01:30,390 linking Bolivia's capital La Paz and Coroico. 28 00:01:31,825 --> 00:01:34,394 It snakes 35 miles through the towering Andes Mountains. 29 00:01:36,463 --> 00:01:40,067 Its official name is the North Yungas Road, 30 00:01:40,200 --> 00:01:41,969 but those who dare to drive it 31 00:01:42,102 --> 00:01:44,705 as well as those too fearful to try 32 00:01:44,838 --> 00:01:48,976 call it El Camino de la Muerte, the Death Road. 33 00:01:49,109 --> 00:01:51,545 (tense music) 34 00:01:53,146 --> 00:01:55,082 Along this narrow strip of dirt 35 00:01:55,215 --> 00:01:58,352 perched over vertical drops of nearly 2000 feet, 36 00:01:59,987 --> 00:02:02,422 (men shouting) 37 00:02:03,790 --> 00:02:07,794 between 200 and 300 motorists perish each year. 38 00:02:07,928 --> 00:02:10,397 (tense music) 39 00:02:11,999 --> 00:02:13,066 Wolfgang Ziegler 40 00:02:13,200 --> 00:02:15,235 has driven the Death Road many times. 41 00:02:16,837 --> 00:02:21,408 - The road is as unforgiving of any road 42 00:02:21,541 --> 00:02:23,543 that I've ever driven on in the world. 43 00:02:24,911 --> 00:02:29,616 The road itself is probably the width of an SUV 44 00:02:31,118 --> 00:02:33,654 and you've got vehicles trying to pass each other. 45 00:02:37,090 --> 00:02:41,762 And the vast majority of the accidents are collisions 46 00:02:41,895 --> 00:02:44,865 where one of the vehicles or both of the vehicles 47 00:02:44,998 --> 00:02:49,936 literally fall off of the sheer cliff that make up the road. 48 00:02:51,571 --> 00:02:53,840 - [Narrator] Since it opened in the 1930s, 49 00:02:53,974 --> 00:02:56,610 the Death Road has claimed thousands of lives 50 00:02:56,743 --> 00:02:59,379 and many fatalities beyond that have gone unreported. 51 00:03:01,715 --> 00:03:04,117 Many of the roads victims have plunged to their deaths 52 00:03:04,251 --> 00:03:09,222 during the winter months when rushing water, falling rocks 53 00:03:10,957 --> 00:03:15,629 and fog make driving conditions even more treacherous. 54 00:03:17,097 --> 00:03:21,535 - In the rainy season, which is November through March, 55 00:03:21,668 --> 00:03:24,438 the road basically turns to slime. 56 00:03:24,571 --> 00:03:27,040 There's a lot of vehicles that slip off 57 00:03:27,174 --> 00:03:29,009 the side of the road in the rain. 58 00:03:35,549 --> 00:03:36,716 - [Narrator] The best bet to survive 59 00:03:36,850 --> 00:03:38,518 this treacherous death trap 60 00:03:38,652 --> 00:03:41,188 is choosing the right vehicle to navigate it. 61 00:03:41,321 --> 00:03:43,390 - You need a four-wheel drive vehicle 62 00:03:43,523 --> 00:03:46,293 and something that has excellent traction. 63 00:03:47,761 --> 00:03:52,032 Be ready for quick maneuvers without over controlling. 64 00:03:52,165 --> 00:03:54,401 Over controlling with no room for error 65 00:03:54,534 --> 00:03:56,269 is gonna get you killed. 66 00:03:56,403 --> 00:03:57,804 There is no room for mistakes. 67 00:03:57,938 --> 00:04:02,476 It's completely unforgiving of any carelessness or neglect. 68 00:04:04,311 --> 00:04:06,680 - [Narrator] In 2006, the Bolivian government 69 00:04:06,813 --> 00:04:10,016 completed this modern safer road to be an alternative, 70 00:04:11,485 --> 00:04:14,421 but hundreds still die every year along the old route 71 00:04:14,554 --> 00:04:17,057 as some truckers still drive here, 72 00:04:17,190 --> 00:04:18,658 including those that deliver goods 73 00:04:18,792 --> 00:04:20,894 to towns that have grown up along the road. 74 00:04:23,864 --> 00:04:25,398 - A lot of these truck drivers 75 00:04:25,532 --> 00:04:27,434 have made their living on this road 76 00:04:27,567 --> 00:04:30,670 and they get paid by how many times 77 00:04:30,804 --> 00:04:34,875 they make this 35 mile trip back and forth. 78 00:04:35,008 --> 00:04:37,410 (upbeat music) 79 00:04:37,544 --> 00:04:38,712 - [Narrator] And they now share the peril 80 00:04:38,845 --> 00:04:41,014 with thrill-seeking tourists that flock here 81 00:04:41,148 --> 00:04:44,618 for the adrenaline rush of the ultimate driving test. 82 00:04:44,751 --> 00:04:49,723 - It's a world landmark when you travel to Bolivia. 83 00:04:51,158 --> 00:04:54,494 It's like the climbing of Everest when you go to Nepal. 84 00:04:54,628 --> 00:04:56,663 It's bragging rights of having driven 85 00:04:56,796 --> 00:04:59,132 on the world's most dangerous road. 86 00:05:01,034 --> 00:05:02,402 - [Narrator] Thrill-seeking mountain bikers 87 00:05:02,536 --> 00:05:05,172 from around the world, covet those bragging rights too. 88 00:05:07,374 --> 00:05:09,776 More than 25,000 have taken the dare. 89 00:05:13,313 --> 00:05:16,550 However, even cycling is not without risk. 90 00:05:16,683 --> 00:05:20,320 Nine people were killed when an SUV hit a cyclist 91 00:05:20,453 --> 00:05:22,956 and both plummeted 300 feet. 92 00:05:23,089 --> 00:05:24,457 There were are no survivors. 93 00:05:26,159 --> 00:05:27,961 But a road doesn't need blind curves 94 00:05:28,094 --> 00:05:29,763 or hairpin turns to be deadly. 95 00:05:32,032 --> 00:05:34,367 Another of the world's most dangerous roads 96 00:05:34,501 --> 00:05:36,903 lies 8,000 miles from Bolivia 97 00:05:37,037 --> 00:05:39,639 in the war torn nation of Iraq. 98 00:05:39,773 --> 00:05:42,409 It's the stretch of road from central Baghdad 99 00:05:42,542 --> 00:05:45,545 that leads seven miles to the country's main airport. 100 00:05:45,679 --> 00:05:48,148 (tense music) 101 00:05:50,050 --> 00:05:51,551 It's a chilling reminder that danger 102 00:05:51,685 --> 00:05:54,087 can also lurk on a flat paved road 103 00:05:54,221 --> 00:05:57,524 with no sharp turns or precipitous cliffs. 104 00:05:57,657 --> 00:06:00,927 During the Iraq war, a trip on this short span of roadway 105 00:06:01,061 --> 00:06:03,196 seemed like the longest drive of your life. 106 00:06:04,598 --> 00:06:07,100 As a critical traffic artery in and out of Baghdad 107 00:06:07,234 --> 00:06:09,402 for both soldiers and civilians, 108 00:06:09,536 --> 00:06:12,038 it was a prime target for insurgents. 109 00:06:12,172 --> 00:06:14,641 (bomb blasts) 110 00:06:16,042 --> 00:06:19,246 Their weapons of choice, IEDs. 111 00:06:19,379 --> 00:06:21,481 (bomb blasts) 112 00:06:21,615 --> 00:06:25,285 - An IED is an improvised explosive device. 113 00:06:25,418 --> 00:06:28,321 That's where the threat takes almost anything 114 00:06:28,455 --> 00:06:31,091 that they have available such as leftover 115 00:06:31,224 --> 00:06:33,793 artillery munitions, leftover mortar bombs, 116 00:06:33,927 --> 00:06:35,929 or even just packages of explosives. 117 00:06:37,130 --> 00:06:38,465 They'll place 'em at this side of the road, 118 00:06:38,598 --> 00:06:41,001 have some kind of initiation device 119 00:06:41,134 --> 00:06:43,670 and they'll launch that at a target when they see fit. 120 00:06:43,803 --> 00:06:46,706 (bomb blasts) 121 00:06:46,840 --> 00:06:49,209 - [Narrator] IED attacks on the road to Baghdad Airport 122 00:06:49,342 --> 00:06:53,179 happen so often that the road was nicknamed IED alley. 123 00:06:54,547 --> 00:06:55,949 (upbeat music) 124 00:06:56,082 --> 00:06:58,351 To help make driving down this dangerous road safer, 125 00:06:58,485 --> 00:07:01,488 the US Army turned to its experts in Warren, Michigan 126 00:07:01,621 --> 00:07:03,590 at the Tank Automotive Research Development 127 00:07:03,723 --> 00:07:05,992 and Engineering Center or TARDEC. 128 00:07:07,527 --> 00:07:09,362 They spent several years developing armor 129 00:07:09,496 --> 00:07:11,998 for Humvees and other vehicles traversing the road. 130 00:07:14,200 --> 00:07:16,236 This essential technology was developed 131 00:07:16,369 --> 00:07:18,371 to protect troops during the Iraq war. 132 00:07:19,606 --> 00:07:22,075 - The first phase was add-on armor. 133 00:07:22,208 --> 00:07:25,312 We had to provide armor protection, not only just the, 134 00:07:25,445 --> 00:07:28,181 the metal and ballistic metals on there, 135 00:07:28,315 --> 00:07:30,684 but we couldn't completely close the vehicle up, 136 00:07:30,817 --> 00:07:32,018 'cause folks need to operate. 137 00:07:32,152 --> 00:07:34,654 So we had to also develop and integrate 138 00:07:34,788 --> 00:07:37,524 ballistic glass as well to protect our war fighters 139 00:07:37,657 --> 00:07:40,794 against IEDs, small arms fire and those things 140 00:07:40,927 --> 00:07:42,562 that they had experienced on the battlefield. 141 00:07:42,696 --> 00:07:45,899 - Initially, we could just put a piece of steel up here, 142 00:07:46,032 --> 00:07:48,134 but as we needed to go to lighter weight, 143 00:07:48,268 --> 00:07:53,239 we'd go to an S-2 glass, fiberglass combined with Kevlar. 144 00:07:54,474 --> 00:07:55,508 And we actually use for even higher performance 145 00:07:55,642 --> 00:07:57,944 and lighter weight, ceramics. 146 00:07:59,245 --> 00:08:01,214 - [Narrator] For reasons of security, 147 00:08:01,348 --> 00:08:03,350 TARDEC engineers won't go into more detail 148 00:08:03,483 --> 00:08:05,285 about the composition of its innovative armors 149 00:08:05,418 --> 00:08:08,722 or the types of projectiles it uses to test them. 150 00:08:08,855 --> 00:08:11,391 (dramatic music) 151 00:08:11,524 --> 00:08:12,992 (gun bangs) 152 00:08:13,126 --> 00:08:15,996 - We have a number of different types of rounds, 153 00:08:16,129 --> 00:08:18,665 both bullets and fragments that we shoot 154 00:08:18,798 --> 00:08:20,000 (gun bangs) 155 00:08:20,133 --> 00:08:23,136 to see how well an armor design performs 156 00:08:23,269 --> 00:08:25,572 against those particular projectors. 157 00:08:25,705 --> 00:08:27,507 We're looking to balance three things. 158 00:08:27,640 --> 00:08:29,275 It's called the three Ps, 159 00:08:29,409 --> 00:08:32,612 payload, protection and performance. 160 00:08:32,746 --> 00:08:36,116 So as we add protection to a vehicle system 161 00:08:36,249 --> 00:08:38,818 that added weight reduces the payload, 162 00:08:38,952 --> 00:08:41,621 the carrying capacity of that vehicle system. 163 00:08:41,755 --> 00:08:43,923 It also negatively impacts 164 00:08:44,057 --> 00:08:46,226 the automotive performance of the vehicle. 165 00:08:46,359 --> 00:08:49,696 So what we do here at TARDEC is the engineering 166 00:08:49,829 --> 00:08:52,932 and analysis to determine how do you trade off 167 00:08:53,066 --> 00:08:54,200 those three things. 168 00:08:59,272 --> 00:09:00,373 dramatic music 169 00:09:00,507 --> 00:09:03,276 For years, one of the most dangerous roads in the world 170 00:09:03,410 --> 00:09:04,944 was Baghdad's airport road. 171 00:09:06,479 --> 00:09:09,449 Referred to as death road by locals. 172 00:09:09,582 --> 00:09:12,118 Known as IED alley to US military. 173 00:09:14,120 --> 00:09:16,890 A key part of the strategy to protect soldiers 174 00:09:17,023 --> 00:09:18,291 was to neutralize the threat 175 00:09:18,425 --> 00:09:20,427 of the explosive devices themselves. 176 00:09:22,429 --> 00:09:26,032 The first step, deploy troops in a convoy of vehicles 177 00:09:26,166 --> 00:09:27,901 to run a route clearance operation. 178 00:09:29,502 --> 00:09:34,074 Their mission, find roadside IEDs before they explode. 179 00:09:34,207 --> 00:09:37,010 (dramatic music) 180 00:09:37,143 --> 00:09:39,679 (bomb blasts) 181 00:09:39,813 --> 00:09:42,782 On this day, soldiers were training for hazardous duty 182 00:09:42,916 --> 00:09:45,118 at Fort Leonard Wood in Missouri. 183 00:09:45,251 --> 00:09:46,686 - This platform that I'm sitting on here 184 00:09:46,820 --> 00:09:48,221 is what we call the RG-31. 185 00:09:48,354 --> 00:09:50,824 We use this platform as front and rear security 186 00:09:50,957 --> 00:09:52,525 to our route clearance formations. 187 00:09:52,659 --> 00:09:54,394 There are some technologies that we developed 188 00:09:54,527 --> 00:09:57,330 to enhance this particular platform formation. 189 00:09:57,464 --> 00:09:59,699 One of those technologies is the mine roller, 190 00:09:59,833 --> 00:10:01,367 and that sits out in front of the vehicle 191 00:10:01,501 --> 00:10:03,803 and anything that is subsurface or buried, 192 00:10:03,937 --> 00:10:06,172 an IED perhaps or a mine. 193 00:10:06,306 --> 00:10:07,440 If it's going to explode, 194 00:10:07,574 --> 00:10:09,509 we want explode it with that roller. 195 00:10:10,977 --> 00:10:14,180 - [Narrator] The RG-31, also sports a powerful camera, 196 00:10:14,314 --> 00:10:16,516 allowing soldiers to identify potential threats 197 00:10:16,649 --> 00:10:17,550 from a distance. 198 00:10:18,785 --> 00:10:20,687 How far, they won't say. 199 00:10:23,323 --> 00:10:25,458 And the route clearance convoy is bolstered 200 00:10:25,592 --> 00:10:27,427 by this battle ready bad boy. 201 00:10:28,628 --> 00:10:30,196 - Behind me what you're looking at right now 202 00:10:30,330 --> 00:10:31,931 is what we call the Buffalo. 203 00:10:32,065 --> 00:10:33,500 (upbeat music) 204 00:10:33,633 --> 00:10:34,934 - [Narrator] Taller than a tank 205 00:10:35,068 --> 00:10:37,670 and fitted with large armored glass windows. 206 00:10:37,804 --> 00:10:39,706 The Buffalo offers soldiers inside 207 00:10:39,839 --> 00:10:41,808 a wide and strategic range of view. 208 00:10:43,309 --> 00:10:47,313 It also features a robotic arm with a pitchfork like hand 209 00:10:47,447 --> 00:10:50,083 capable of extending to remove suspicious objects 210 00:10:50,216 --> 00:10:51,417 from a road surface 211 00:10:52,852 --> 00:10:55,588 or for digging up IEDs buried beneath a road. 212 00:10:57,524 --> 00:10:59,325 - There are several types of IEDs. 213 00:10:59,459 --> 00:11:02,162 Some are radio controlled, some are command wired. 214 00:11:02,295 --> 00:11:03,630 They have to be aware of all of that, 215 00:11:03,763 --> 00:11:05,865 so that as they come up on something, 216 00:11:05,999 --> 00:11:07,934 they can identify it pretty quickly and easily. 217 00:11:08,034 --> 00:11:10,737 Get it out of there before somebody's injured by it. 218 00:11:12,672 --> 00:11:14,774 - [Narrator] This team in Iraq discovered an IED 219 00:11:14,908 --> 00:11:16,442 just buried off the roadside. 220 00:11:22,448 --> 00:11:24,217 - [Narrator] The team successfully unearthed it. 221 00:11:24,350 --> 00:11:25,451 - [Soldier] We got her out. 222 00:11:25,585 --> 00:11:27,287 - There you go. - We got her out. 223 00:11:27,420 --> 00:11:29,055 - [Soldier] Awesome. 224 00:11:30,723 --> 00:11:31,858 - [Narrator] Soldiers manning the Buffalo 225 00:11:31,991 --> 00:11:34,360 can also deploy a remote controlled robot. 226 00:11:34,494 --> 00:11:36,196 - I can't see inside a culvert. 227 00:11:36,329 --> 00:11:39,198 So I'll unload this one, I'll run it down into the ditch. 228 00:11:40,533 --> 00:11:42,302 Look into a culvert. 229 00:11:42,435 --> 00:11:45,738 If I have a suspected item, then I can deal with it. 230 00:11:46,973 --> 00:11:48,341 If there's nothing there, great. 231 00:11:48,474 --> 00:11:50,109 I put the robot back on the chassis 232 00:11:50,243 --> 00:11:51,711 and we continue our mission. 233 00:11:53,212 --> 00:11:55,882 - [Narrator] However, clearing every IED from the road 234 00:11:56,015 --> 00:11:59,819 to Baghdad Airport and other roads in Iraq is impossible. 235 00:11:59,953 --> 00:12:01,754 And when they would go off, 236 00:12:02,956 --> 00:12:05,525 the dangers went far beyond the explosions. 237 00:12:05,658 --> 00:12:08,661 IEDs can create a gauntlet of sizable craters 238 00:12:08,795 --> 00:12:10,964 that is difficult and dangerous to navigate. 239 00:12:12,432 --> 00:12:14,968 The Army's answer was a concrete mobile mixer. 240 00:12:16,402 --> 00:12:19,606 The next best thing to a concrete plant on wheels, 241 00:12:19,739 --> 00:12:23,910 soldiers from the Army's 230th concrete team move fast 242 00:12:24,043 --> 00:12:27,547 to complete the daunting task called rapid crater repair. 243 00:12:27,680 --> 00:12:29,382 - Typical civilian Ready Mix truck 244 00:12:29,515 --> 00:12:32,719 has to report to a batch plant to receive its load, 245 00:12:32,852 --> 00:12:34,354 to go out and perform its mission. 246 00:12:34,487 --> 00:12:37,757 One of the advantages of the concrete mobile mixer 247 00:12:37,890 --> 00:12:41,628 over a typical Ready Mix truck is that the aggregate 248 00:12:41,761 --> 00:12:44,230 and the pour on cement remain on the vehicle drive. 249 00:12:45,932 --> 00:12:47,367 - [Narrator] Equipped with water tanks, 250 00:12:47,500 --> 00:12:50,270 the mobile mixer can easily whip up a batch of concrete 251 00:12:50,403 --> 00:12:52,705 at the mission site in a matter of minutes. 252 00:12:54,907 --> 00:12:57,076 Then crater repair begins. 253 00:12:58,611 --> 00:13:01,247 It's a race against the clock under threat of ambushes, 254 00:13:01,381 --> 00:13:02,715 and enemy sniper fire. 255 00:13:04,717 --> 00:13:07,253 Soldiers finish the job by signing the new section 256 00:13:07,387 --> 00:13:10,390 of the roadway with their nickname, The Goons. 257 00:13:13,459 --> 00:13:15,094 Then it's off to the next crater. 258 00:13:17,563 --> 00:13:20,233 Even if you aren't driving a war zone, 259 00:13:20,366 --> 00:13:22,101 danger of another kind may await 260 00:13:23,336 --> 00:13:25,271 because when mother nature has her way, 261 00:13:25,538 --> 00:13:26,406 (car screeching) 262 00:13:26,539 --> 00:13:27,607 all bets are off. 263 00:13:29,342 --> 00:13:31,678 One variable can turn even the most innocuous 264 00:13:31,811 --> 00:13:33,913 stretch of road into a death trap. 265 00:13:34,047 --> 00:13:36,082 (dramatic music) 266 00:13:36,215 --> 00:13:38,084 (lightening) 267 00:13:38,217 --> 00:13:39,152 The weather. 268 00:13:41,254 --> 00:13:44,557 On average, more than 6 million vehicle crashes occur 269 00:13:44,691 --> 00:13:46,926 in the United States each year, 270 00:13:47,060 --> 00:13:49,529 and 1/4 are attributed to weather. 271 00:13:49,662 --> 00:13:52,065 (tense music) 272 00:13:54,434 --> 00:13:55,635 Statistically, the deadliest 273 00:13:55,768 --> 00:13:58,137 kind of weather to drive in is fog 274 00:13:59,238 --> 00:14:00,940 and driving in it, could feel like 275 00:14:01,074 --> 00:14:03,209 the most dangerous drive of all. 276 00:14:03,342 --> 00:14:04,877 One with zero visibility. 277 00:14:06,279 --> 00:14:07,814 In this satellite photo, 278 00:14:07,947 --> 00:14:10,216 that's snow draping over 400 miles 279 00:14:10,350 --> 00:14:12,452 of California Central Valley. 280 00:14:12,585 --> 00:14:16,122 It's an especially thick ground fog called Tule fog. 281 00:14:18,725 --> 00:14:20,693 You can imagine the havoc it sometimes triggers 282 00:14:20,827 --> 00:14:23,396 on two of the state's straightest busiest routes 283 00:14:23,529 --> 00:14:25,398 that pass through the region, 284 00:14:25,531 --> 00:14:28,701 Interstate 5 and Highway 99. 285 00:14:28,835 --> 00:14:32,538 - If you were to drive into a thick bank of Tule fog, 286 00:14:32,672 --> 00:14:35,875 you wouldn't be able to see that fence. 287 00:14:36,008 --> 00:14:37,310 (traffic noise) 288 00:14:37,443 --> 00:14:40,847 You probably wouldn't be able to see 10 or 12 feet 289 00:14:40,980 --> 00:14:43,683 and it's 65 or 70 miles an hour. 290 00:14:43,816 --> 00:14:45,685 If there's somebody stopped in that fog 291 00:14:45,818 --> 00:14:49,722 in the lane that you're in, if you're not slowing down, 292 00:14:49,856 --> 00:14:51,591 that's the recipe for disaster. 293 00:14:56,996 --> 00:14:58,364 - [Narrator] California's Tule fog 294 00:14:58,498 --> 00:15:01,601 has triggered several massive and deadly freeway pile ups 295 00:15:01,734 --> 00:15:05,171 including one of the biggest on November 3rd, 2007. 296 00:15:07,373 --> 00:15:10,810 On Northbound 99, the disastrous sequence of events 297 00:15:10,943 --> 00:15:14,180 was set into motion at approximately 8:00 am. 298 00:15:14,313 --> 00:15:16,816 - The first car that drove into the fog bank 299 00:15:16,949 --> 00:15:19,051 drove into it at regular freeway speeds, 300 00:15:19,185 --> 00:15:21,220 probably 70 miles an hour. 301 00:15:21,354 --> 00:15:23,322 Didn't realize that it was gonna be as dense 302 00:15:23,456 --> 00:15:24,991 or as thick as it was. 303 00:15:25,124 --> 00:15:27,226 He didn't slow down until he was in it. 304 00:15:29,595 --> 00:15:31,297 - [Narrator] After entering the dense fog, 305 00:15:31,430 --> 00:15:34,100 the car virtually disappeared from the site of the driver 306 00:15:34,233 --> 00:15:37,303 of an 18 wheeler following close behind. 307 00:15:37,436 --> 00:15:39,205 He never saw the car slow down. 308 00:15:42,875 --> 00:15:45,578 The initial collision set off a chain reaction of accidents 309 00:15:45,711 --> 00:15:49,582 as vehicle after vehicle entered the fog bank and crashed. 310 00:15:49,715 --> 00:15:52,919 (upbeat music) 311 00:15:53,052 --> 00:15:56,622 - There was debris and vehicles scattered from this point, 312 00:15:56,756 --> 00:16:00,226 going back this way, approximately one mile. 313 00:16:00,359 --> 00:16:03,529 There were three different clusters involved in it, 314 00:16:03,663 --> 00:16:08,601 102 to 103 vehicles with 18 big rigs involved. 315 00:16:18,211 --> 00:16:20,580 It actually kind of reminded me of some of the footage 316 00:16:20,713 --> 00:16:23,516 from Desert Storm, the highway to Baghdad, 317 00:16:23,649 --> 00:16:26,519 where they had just bombed out all the vehicles. 318 00:16:26,652 --> 00:16:27,820 - [Narrator] The driver of the first car 319 00:16:27,954 --> 00:16:29,956 into the fog survived, 320 00:16:30,089 --> 00:16:33,392 but two other motorists died and 39 were injured. 321 00:16:36,262 --> 00:16:39,298 An unfortunate phenomenon makes fog-related traffic pile ups 322 00:16:39,432 --> 00:16:40,833 of this magnitude possible. 323 00:16:42,034 --> 00:16:44,704 Many drivers don't instinctively slow down 324 00:16:44,837 --> 00:16:47,640 even when the fog limits their visibility to near zero. 325 00:16:49,108 --> 00:16:51,677 Seeing no fixed points of reference along the roadside 326 00:16:51,811 --> 00:16:54,146 can make them less aware of their speed. 327 00:16:54,280 --> 00:16:57,316 - There's a theory that people are actually speeding up 328 00:16:57,450 --> 00:16:58,784 when they can't see their surroundings 329 00:16:58,918 --> 00:17:00,987 and they can't see how fast they're going. 330 00:17:02,655 --> 00:17:04,657 - [Narrator] California's Department of Transportation, 331 00:17:04,790 --> 00:17:07,460 Caltrans is trying to reduce the danger. 332 00:17:07,593 --> 00:17:11,697 (upbeat music) (phone rings) 333 00:17:11,831 --> 00:17:13,532 - Good morning, TLC, this is Renee. 334 00:17:13,666 --> 00:17:15,868 (upbeat music) 335 00:17:16,002 --> 00:17:17,203 - [Narrator] Weather stations 336 00:17:17,336 --> 00:17:19,038 and electronic changeable message signs, 337 00:17:19,171 --> 00:17:21,540 help motorists to avoid fog pile ups 338 00:17:21,674 --> 00:17:24,443 by alerting them of conditions and advising caution. 339 00:17:26,245 --> 00:17:29,181 - But an automated system is only as good as the people 340 00:17:29,315 --> 00:17:31,250 driving it wanna obey it. 341 00:17:31,384 --> 00:17:33,319 We've gotta get the people to realize that 342 00:17:33,452 --> 00:17:35,821 when they can't see, they gotta slow down. 343 00:17:35,955 --> 00:17:38,424 (tense music) 344 00:17:44,263 --> 00:17:49,001 Snow causes an average of 150,000 traffic accidents 345 00:17:49,135 --> 00:17:52,672 and kills over 1300 motorists in the US each year. 346 00:17:54,774 --> 00:17:57,543 Winding through 30 miles of the Colorado Rockies 347 00:17:57,677 --> 00:18:00,112 is one of America's most treacherous snowy roads. 348 00:18:00,246 --> 00:18:03,716 - We're standing next to US 550, which is a Colorado highway 349 00:18:03,849 --> 00:18:05,484 that generally runs north and south 350 00:18:05,618 --> 00:18:07,887 between Ouray and Silverton, Colorado. 351 00:18:09,522 --> 00:18:10,756 - [Narrator] Partially because it was built 352 00:18:10,890 --> 00:18:13,626 on the same route as a 19th century wagon trail 353 00:18:13,759 --> 00:18:15,962 leading to Colorado silver mines. 354 00:18:16,095 --> 00:18:17,730 This section of US 550 355 00:18:17,863 --> 00:18:20,967 is also referred to as the Million Dollar Highway. 356 00:18:23,469 --> 00:18:28,040 And every winter nature blankets it with a treasure of snow 357 00:18:28,174 --> 00:18:30,476 400 inches in an average year. 358 00:18:31,677 --> 00:18:33,012 - Average storm is an inch an hour, 359 00:18:33,145 --> 00:18:35,448 but we can get up to six an hour 360 00:18:35,581 --> 00:18:39,218 with a lot of wind, which causes poor visibility. 361 00:18:40,653 --> 00:18:42,989 - [Narrator] Poor visibility and slick icy surfaces 362 00:18:43,122 --> 00:18:44,590 can make a lethal combination. 363 00:18:46,993 --> 00:18:48,961 It's worse on the Million Dollar Highway 364 00:18:49,095 --> 00:18:51,530 because the road is narrow, lacks guardrails, 365 00:18:51,664 --> 00:18:54,600 and has drops of up to 400 feet. 366 00:18:56,202 --> 00:18:57,236 - There are some very steep drop offs here, 367 00:18:57,370 --> 00:18:58,371 and we don't have a place 368 00:18:58,504 --> 00:19:00,172 to anchor the guardrail adequately, 369 00:19:00,306 --> 00:19:01,841 and it helps not to have the guardrail 370 00:19:01,974 --> 00:19:04,210 to be able to clear the snow off the highway. 371 00:19:05,644 --> 00:19:07,113 - [Narrator] The drivers making this dangerous drive 372 00:19:07,246 --> 00:19:08,681 have to worry about more than just 373 00:19:08,814 --> 00:19:10,082 snow falling from the sky. 374 00:19:11,484 --> 00:19:13,419 The Million Dollar Highway is one of the most 375 00:19:13,552 --> 00:19:17,023 avalanche prone roads in the United States. 376 00:19:17,156 --> 00:19:20,393 In the 25 mile stretch between Ouray and Silverton 377 00:19:20,526 --> 00:19:22,261 and then south towards Durango, 378 00:19:22,395 --> 00:19:24,797 there's 70 known avalanche paths 379 00:19:24,930 --> 00:19:27,066 making the highway the highest avalanche road 380 00:19:27,199 --> 00:19:28,768 per mile in North America. 381 00:19:30,036 --> 00:19:32,104 - By far the highest hazards on these passes 382 00:19:32,238 --> 00:19:34,540 during the wintertime are the avalanche hazards. 383 00:19:35,775 --> 00:19:37,643 (dramatic music) 384 00:19:39,111 --> 00:19:40,680 We average hundreds of avalanches 385 00:19:40,813 --> 00:19:42,381 along this road every year. 386 00:19:42,515 --> 00:19:44,950 And unfortunately we've had people killed 387 00:19:45,084 --> 00:19:46,485 just up the road from us here. 388 00:19:46,619 --> 00:19:48,421 On occasion, there's so much snow up here 389 00:19:48,554 --> 00:19:50,489 and so many avalanches that we've either set off 390 00:19:50,623 --> 00:19:51,724 or that have come down naturally 391 00:19:51,857 --> 00:19:54,126 that we have to close the road to all traffic. 392 00:19:55,995 --> 00:19:57,263 - [Narrator] But whether the snow on the road 393 00:19:57,396 --> 00:19:59,398 comes from avalanches or storms, 394 00:20:00,900 --> 00:20:02,802 the Colorado department of transportation's 395 00:20:02,935 --> 00:20:07,173 basic countermeasure to the danger is snow removal. 396 00:20:09,275 --> 00:20:10,609 And not surprisingly, 397 00:20:10,743 --> 00:20:13,245 this prodigious task carries its own dangers. 398 00:20:15,347 --> 00:20:17,016 Over the last few decades, 399 00:20:17,149 --> 00:20:19,085 five workers have lost their lives. 400 00:20:21,487 --> 00:20:23,889 - So when these guys are out plowing 401 00:20:24,023 --> 00:20:28,060 the snow off the highway, the dangers from the avalanche, 402 00:20:28,194 --> 00:20:30,362 you just, you never know when they're gonna, 403 00:20:30,496 --> 00:20:32,031 when the slides are gonna run. 404 00:20:33,732 --> 00:20:35,101 - [Narrator] For these workers, 405 00:20:35,234 --> 00:20:37,203 as well as the motorists who drive here in the winter, 406 00:20:37,336 --> 00:20:40,005 the best defense against danger is caution. 407 00:20:40,139 --> 00:20:42,108 - You need to be very careful and just driving slow 408 00:20:42,241 --> 00:20:43,709 and watching the speed limits and be careful 409 00:20:43,843 --> 00:20:44,910 around all the curves. 410 00:20:45,044 --> 00:20:47,046 There's really no second chances up here. 411 00:20:48,481 --> 00:20:50,416 - [Narrator] One American city has taken great strides, 412 00:20:50,549 --> 00:20:53,385 improving our chances on roads made dangerous by weather, 413 00:20:54,553 --> 00:20:55,654 Houston, Texas. 414 00:20:57,857 --> 00:21:00,426 Here they are no stranger to extreme weather events. 415 00:21:01,827 --> 00:21:06,398 In 2001, Tropical Storm Allison flooded most of the city. 416 00:21:07,633 --> 00:21:11,470 In 2005, Hurricane Rita forced a mass evacuation 417 00:21:12,972 --> 00:21:17,843 and in 2017, Hurricane Harvey caused more than 100 deaths. 418 00:21:19,145 --> 00:21:22,148 But to help cut down on these catastrophes, 419 00:21:22,281 --> 00:21:24,150 Houston operates a special monitoring 420 00:21:24,283 --> 00:21:28,320 and communications facility called Houston TranStar 421 00:21:28,454 --> 00:21:30,656 that helps safeguard its motorists. 422 00:21:30,790 --> 00:21:33,559 It also acts as an emergency management center. 423 00:21:33,692 --> 00:21:37,496 - We monitor over 600 cameras on the freeways. 424 00:21:37,630 --> 00:21:39,398 We have the four main screens here 425 00:21:39,532 --> 00:21:41,901 where we watch tours of the major freeways. 426 00:21:42,001 --> 00:21:44,270 We have over 300 miles of fiber out there 427 00:21:44,403 --> 00:21:47,907 where we're bringing back the information from sensors. 428 00:21:49,074 --> 00:21:51,043 This is our typical weather sensor. 429 00:21:51,177 --> 00:21:53,345 It could be configured in different ways. 430 00:21:53,479 --> 00:21:56,248 For roadway flooding, it has a rain gauge 431 00:21:56,382 --> 00:21:57,883 and a pressure transducer. 432 00:21:59,752 --> 00:22:02,621 We have wind gauges, which measure the wind speed, 433 00:22:02,755 --> 00:22:05,591 wind direction, and also peak wind gusts. 434 00:22:06,759 --> 00:22:09,295 They also have humidity barometric pressure, 435 00:22:09,428 --> 00:22:12,398 and that's mainly for hurricanes and tropical storms. 436 00:22:13,632 --> 00:22:15,067 - [Narrator] Once the sensors collect the data 437 00:22:15,201 --> 00:22:18,070 and analyze it, TranStar relays it to the public 438 00:22:18,204 --> 00:22:19,705 via its official website, 439 00:22:20,673 --> 00:22:22,641 email alerts to registered users 440 00:22:22,775 --> 00:22:25,110 and dynamic message signs along highways. 441 00:22:27,179 --> 00:22:28,681 Whether it's torrential downpours, 442 00:22:28,814 --> 00:22:30,783 heavy snow or dense fog, 443 00:22:31,951 --> 00:22:33,619 there is one universal recommendation 444 00:22:33,752 --> 00:22:35,387 from the transportation pros 445 00:22:35,521 --> 00:22:37,690 when it comes to driving in those conditions. 446 00:22:39,592 --> 00:22:41,827 - If you don't need to go, don't go. 447 00:22:41,961 --> 00:22:44,897 - The best bet is if you can avoid that trip, stay at home, 448 00:22:45,030 --> 00:22:48,734 but if you have to get out and it, you need to be cautious, 449 00:22:48,868 --> 00:22:52,838 slow your speeds down, have greater following distances 450 00:22:52,972 --> 00:22:55,908 and just be aware of the conditions at all times. 451 00:22:56,041 --> 00:22:57,810 - [Narrator] Even when the weather is fine, 452 00:22:57,943 --> 00:23:00,613 a leisure drive can turn dangerous in an instant. 453 00:23:00,746 --> 00:23:03,015 (dramatic music) 454 00:23:03,148 --> 00:23:05,150 On average, dangerous roads in the US 455 00:23:05,284 --> 00:23:07,686 take a hundred lives every day. 456 00:23:11,890 --> 00:23:13,826 (upbeat music) 457 00:23:14,860 --> 00:23:16,829 Making for some of the most dangerous drives 458 00:23:16,962 --> 00:23:18,931 in the United States are without a doubt 459 00:23:20,032 --> 00:23:21,867 two lane and multi-lane highways. 460 00:23:23,269 --> 00:23:25,304 - [Officer] You get to come on over here, ma'am. 461 00:23:25,437 --> 00:23:26,572 - [Narrator] And no one knows that better 462 00:23:26,705 --> 00:23:28,674 than the officers that patrol them. 463 00:23:28,807 --> 00:23:31,543 - You're up here and anybody hits the back of my patrol car. 464 00:23:31,677 --> 00:23:32,878 There's a good chance you're gonna get caught 465 00:23:33,012 --> 00:23:35,047 somewhere in between that car and your car. 466 00:23:36,715 --> 00:23:41,720 I don't want that to happen to you. 467 00:23:42,888 --> 00:23:44,890 Just like that, see, just like that. 468 00:23:47,192 --> 00:23:49,028 - [Narrator] An average of 38,000 people 469 00:23:49,161 --> 00:23:52,398 perish on America's 4 million miles of highways each year 470 00:23:53,299 --> 00:23:54,967 comprising 90% of the nation's 471 00:23:55,100 --> 00:23:56,802 total transportation deaths. 472 00:23:58,470 --> 00:23:59,672 (car skidding) 473 00:24:01,573 --> 00:24:04,343 Even so, highway fatality rates in the US 474 00:24:04,476 --> 00:24:07,146 have dropped significantly over the past few decades. 475 00:24:08,480 --> 00:24:11,784 In 2019, it was just 1.1 fatalities 476 00:24:11,917 --> 00:24:13,619 per 100 million miles driven. 477 00:24:15,521 --> 00:24:17,690 One of the lowest fatality rates in history. 478 00:24:19,692 --> 00:24:21,260 This fatality rate is minuscule 479 00:24:21,393 --> 00:24:23,762 compared to the rates of the early 20th century. 480 00:24:25,230 --> 00:24:27,700 The arrow witnessed its peak in 1909 481 00:24:29,468 --> 00:24:32,671 when there were 45 fatalities per 100 miles driven. 482 00:24:32,805 --> 00:24:34,540 (car horn and crash) 483 00:24:34,673 --> 00:24:39,111 An astronomical 40 times greater than today. 484 00:24:39,244 --> 00:24:42,481 (dramatic music) 485 00:24:42,614 --> 00:24:46,385 The reason, thousands of new inexperienced drivers in cars 486 00:24:46,518 --> 00:24:48,253 lacking today's safety features, 487 00:24:49,788 --> 00:24:51,357 navigating primitive roads. 488 00:24:52,891 --> 00:24:54,994 But the early 20th century also witnessed 489 00:24:55,127 --> 00:24:57,062 the advent of highway hardware, 490 00:24:57,196 --> 00:25:00,699 such as median barriers, guardrails, signposts, 491 00:25:00,833 --> 00:25:05,371 and lane markers that revolutionized road safety. 492 00:25:06,538 --> 00:25:08,273 - Roadside hardware has been around 493 00:25:08,407 --> 00:25:11,176 pretty much since the roadway system was developed, 494 00:25:11,310 --> 00:25:14,012 but we've been able to make roadside hardware better 495 00:25:14,146 --> 00:25:16,849 and better over the years by investing in research 496 00:25:16,982 --> 00:25:18,751 and by investing in technology. 497 00:25:18,884 --> 00:25:20,786 (Crash) 498 00:25:24,022 --> 00:25:25,657 - [Narrator] The Federal Highway Administration 499 00:25:25,791 --> 00:25:28,060 helps test and develop highway hardware. 500 00:25:29,728 --> 00:25:33,932 Since the late 1980s, FHWA engineers have crushed cars, 501 00:25:35,067 --> 00:25:38,537 battered barriers and smashed guardrails 502 00:25:38,670 --> 00:25:41,106 at the Federal Outdoor Impact Laboratory 503 00:25:41,240 --> 00:25:43,475 or FOIL in McLean, Virginia, 504 00:25:48,313 --> 00:25:49,815 all in the name of road safety. 505 00:25:53,719 --> 00:25:55,254 Their test results are then studied 506 00:25:55,387 --> 00:25:57,523 by the National Crash Analysis Center. 507 00:25:57,656 --> 00:26:00,192 (upbeat music) 508 00:26:01,660 --> 00:26:04,229 They used to do all their crash testing this way, 509 00:26:04,363 --> 00:26:07,599 but now they rely heavily on computerized simulations 510 00:26:07,733 --> 00:26:10,602 using virtual models of cars and highway hardware. 511 00:26:12,638 --> 00:26:14,706 They now use real world tests 512 00:26:14,840 --> 00:26:17,976 to confirm their virtual models behave like the real McCoy. 513 00:26:19,845 --> 00:26:22,414 - This track is one of the two major impact facilities 514 00:26:22,548 --> 00:26:26,118 we have here at the Federal Outdoor Impact Laboratory. 515 00:26:28,987 --> 00:26:30,656 Behind me, you see our accelerator 516 00:26:30,789 --> 00:26:33,025 that allows us to do full scale crash testing 517 00:26:33,158 --> 00:26:34,526 over a range of vehicles, 518 00:26:34,660 --> 00:26:37,896 ranging some small cars to single unit trucks. 519 00:26:38,030 --> 00:26:40,833 We can conduct the test at various impact speeds 520 00:26:40,966 --> 00:26:43,035 and we can repeat that time and time again. 521 00:26:44,636 --> 00:26:46,271 - [Narrator] To test how some highway hardware 522 00:26:46,405 --> 00:26:51,376 withstands impacts, engineers use a massive slab of concrete 523 00:26:52,277 --> 00:26:53,245 instead of an actual vehicle. 524 00:26:54,446 --> 00:26:56,582 - Behind me, we have the pendulum test. 525 00:26:56,715 --> 00:27:00,319 The 5,000 pound concrete block that's there now 526 00:27:00,452 --> 00:27:03,122 is basically representing a pickup truck 527 00:27:03,255 --> 00:27:05,257 which when released will hit the guardrail 528 00:27:05,390 --> 00:27:06,859 at 25 miles an hour. 529 00:27:06,992 --> 00:27:08,927 (siren) 530 00:27:11,964 --> 00:27:14,533 (upbeat music) 531 00:27:14,666 --> 00:27:16,301 - [Narrator] This test is conducted to determine 532 00:27:16,435 --> 00:27:18,237 how much damage guardrails can take 533 00:27:18,370 --> 00:27:20,539 before they can no longer serve their purpose. 534 00:27:20,672 --> 00:27:23,175 (siren) 535 00:27:23,308 --> 00:27:27,045 (metal rattling) 536 00:27:29,848 --> 00:27:31,583 That purpose is to absorb the energy 537 00:27:31,750 --> 00:27:35,254 and reduce the speed of any vehicle that hits the guardrail 538 00:27:35,387 --> 00:27:37,156 while also keeping it on the shoulder 539 00:27:37,289 --> 00:27:39,658 instead of diverting it back into traffic lanes. 540 00:27:40,993 --> 00:27:43,896 (tires screeching) 541 00:27:46,765 --> 00:27:51,003 The main purpose of highway medians is to provide separation 542 00:27:51,136 --> 00:27:53,438 between opposite directions of travel. 543 00:27:53,572 --> 00:27:56,308 But some states like North Carolina and Washington 544 00:27:56,441 --> 00:27:58,944 have had chronic problems with cars crossing medians 545 00:27:59,077 --> 00:28:02,247 without barriers, and then slamming into oncoming traffic. 546 00:28:03,415 --> 00:28:06,251 One solution widely implemented in the 1990s 547 00:28:06,385 --> 00:28:08,453 was a crucial highway hardware addition, 548 00:28:09,621 --> 00:28:11,056 the cable median barrier. 549 00:28:13,525 --> 00:28:15,394 These cables mounted on posts 550 00:28:15,527 --> 00:28:18,297 not only helped prevent vehicles from breaking through, 551 00:28:18,430 --> 00:28:20,198 but also function like a guardrail, 552 00:28:21,400 --> 00:28:22,935 preventing cars from bouncing back 553 00:28:23,068 --> 00:28:25,470 into harm's way in traffic lanes. 554 00:28:25,604 --> 00:28:28,040 Its impact has been monumental. 555 00:28:28,173 --> 00:28:31,310 - In some cases, it has been 90% effective 556 00:28:31,443 --> 00:28:34,279 in reducing the incidents of head on collisions. 557 00:28:35,647 --> 00:28:37,549 - [Narrator] But the strategic placement of highway hardware 558 00:28:37,683 --> 00:28:40,819 is just as vital to countering danger as it's design. 559 00:28:40,953 --> 00:28:43,222 (dramatic music) 560 00:28:43,355 --> 00:28:46,391 This test car dips beneath the lowest cable of the barrier 561 00:28:46,525 --> 00:28:48,327 placed on the far side of a ditch. 562 00:28:50,696 --> 00:28:53,198 By moving the barrier to the near side of a ditch, 563 00:28:53,332 --> 00:28:54,900 the cable performs as it should, 564 00:28:58,036 --> 00:29:00,105 Even with these safety improvements, 565 00:29:00,238 --> 00:29:03,175 many United States highways are still becoming antiquated. 566 00:29:05,444 --> 00:29:08,146 - Highways and roadways in some of our rural areas, 567 00:29:08,280 --> 00:29:10,782 they haven't changed a lot over the last 50 years, 568 00:29:10,916 --> 00:29:14,586 60 years, 70 years, they're still very windy. 569 00:29:14,720 --> 00:29:16,221 They're still very narrow. 570 00:29:17,856 --> 00:29:19,858 - [Narrator] And they're often plagued by trees, 571 00:29:19,992 --> 00:29:21,560 telephone poles, and other fixtures 572 00:29:21,693 --> 00:29:23,795 set dangerously close to the shoulders. 573 00:29:27,499 --> 00:29:29,134 But the Federal Highway Administration 574 00:29:29,268 --> 00:29:31,670 has engineered to evaluate the perils of these 575 00:29:31,803 --> 00:29:35,907 and other dangerous roads with a highway simulator. 576 00:29:36,041 --> 00:29:38,477 (soft upbeat music) 577 00:29:38,610 --> 00:29:40,846 Drivers sit inside a full sized car 578 00:29:40,979 --> 00:29:42,481 and view an eight foot high display 579 00:29:42,614 --> 00:29:45,350 with a wrap around 270 degree perspective. 580 00:29:46,551 --> 00:29:48,620 Digitally recorded images of actual roads 581 00:29:48,754 --> 00:29:51,556 are visible through the windshield and all door windows. 582 00:29:53,992 --> 00:29:55,594 And strategically placed monitors 583 00:29:55,727 --> 00:29:58,530 act as side view and rear view mirrors, 584 00:29:58,664 --> 00:30:01,133 creating a realistic driving experience. 585 00:30:01,266 --> 00:30:02,534 - And it's interactive. 586 00:30:02,668 --> 00:30:05,270 So when they turn, the scenario turns. 587 00:30:05,404 --> 00:30:07,172 When they stop, the scenario stops. 588 00:30:07,306 --> 00:30:10,308 If they speed up the scenario speeds up. 589 00:30:10,442 --> 00:30:11,743 - [Narrator] The simulator's motion base 590 00:30:11,877 --> 00:30:14,012 creates the sensation of accelerating, 591 00:30:14,146 --> 00:30:16,748 turning and climbing in descending hills. 592 00:30:18,283 --> 00:30:20,952 The goal is to determine how drivers respond to hazards 593 00:30:21,086 --> 00:30:23,989 on dangerous roads, in a safe, controlled environment. 594 00:30:25,190 --> 00:30:26,992 Studying their reactions and habits 595 00:30:27,125 --> 00:30:30,262 allows engineers to assess a road's design flaws 596 00:30:30,395 --> 00:30:31,196 and correct them. 597 00:30:32,397 --> 00:30:34,332 But the simulator also allows engineers 598 00:30:34,466 --> 00:30:37,302 to analyze roads yet to be constructed. 599 00:30:37,436 --> 00:30:39,237 Once trouble spots are identified, 600 00:30:39,371 --> 00:30:40,872 it's back to the drawing board. 601 00:30:45,043 --> 00:30:47,446 Statistically, the most dangerous roads on earth 602 00:30:47,579 --> 00:30:49,781 are in third world and developing nations. 603 00:30:49,915 --> 00:30:51,516 (car horn and crash) 604 00:30:51,650 --> 00:30:53,719 While China and the United States are near the top 605 00:30:53,852 --> 00:30:56,188 of the most dangerous roads list, 606 00:30:56,321 --> 00:30:59,424 today, no country suffers more traffic fatalities 607 00:30:59,558 --> 00:31:00,358 than India. 608 00:31:01,660 --> 00:31:03,829 India accounts from more than 85% 609 00:31:03,962 --> 00:31:07,065 of all traffic deaths a year worldwide. 610 00:31:07,199 --> 00:31:10,702 That means that 151,000 Indians die each year, 611 00:31:12,070 --> 00:31:14,706 four times as many as in the United States. 612 00:31:18,210 --> 00:31:21,980 - Roads in the developing world and third world countries 613 00:31:22,114 --> 00:31:25,217 have a tendency to be more hazardous than our roads here 614 00:31:25,350 --> 00:31:27,853 primarily because we have been at it for a while now 615 00:31:27,986 --> 00:31:30,555 and have worked to make roads safe 616 00:31:30,689 --> 00:31:32,090 for the vehicles that are on 'em. 617 00:31:32,224 --> 00:31:34,559 In developing countries, third world countries 618 00:31:34,693 --> 00:31:37,295 it's a new concept. 619 00:31:38,730 --> 00:31:40,732 - The main issues are these roadways 620 00:31:40,866 --> 00:31:44,069 have all different variety of traffic on the same road. 621 00:31:44,202 --> 00:31:46,438 Like you have passenger vehicles, you have trucks, 622 00:31:46,571 --> 00:31:48,073 you have pedestrians, you have rickshaws, 623 00:31:48,206 --> 00:31:51,610 you have cycles which actually reduces the capacity 624 00:31:51,743 --> 00:31:54,112 and adds the safety concern. 625 00:31:57,048 --> 00:31:58,116 - [Narrator] Compounding the danger 626 00:31:58,250 --> 00:32:00,118 is that hundreds of thousands of new drivers 627 00:32:00,252 --> 00:32:02,287 take to these cluttered roads every year. 628 00:32:03,655 --> 00:32:06,591 From a generation with virtually no car culture heritage. 629 00:32:07,859 --> 00:32:09,961 - In the US and in Western Europe, 630 00:32:10,095 --> 00:32:12,931 you've had generations that have operated vehicles. 631 00:32:13,064 --> 00:32:16,168 So people have almost a cultural instinct 632 00:32:16,301 --> 00:32:19,070 on what you do when you get behind a wheel of a car. 633 00:32:20,972 --> 00:32:22,541 - [Narrator] Not so in China, 634 00:32:22,674 --> 00:32:24,976 where millions of new drivers are turning the nation's 635 00:32:25,110 --> 00:32:28,413 growing interstate system into a crapshoot. 636 00:32:28,547 --> 00:32:32,083 - Today, the Chinese driving along their new super highways 637 00:32:32,217 --> 00:32:34,686 are high speed neophytes. 638 00:32:34,820 --> 00:32:35,887 They don't know what they're doing. 639 00:32:36,021 --> 00:32:37,823 They're moving about they're changing lanes. 640 00:32:37,956 --> 00:32:39,357 They're using their horns 641 00:32:39,491 --> 00:32:42,394 when people can't possibly hear them, it is chaotic. 642 00:32:42,527 --> 00:32:44,496 Traveling on the Chinese interstates today 643 00:32:44,629 --> 00:32:46,364 is like being in the Wild West. 644 00:32:46,498 --> 00:32:47,599 Anything goes. 645 00:32:49,501 --> 00:32:50,969 - [Narrator] Beyond improving the education 646 00:32:51,102 --> 00:32:53,538 and training of its drivers, developing nations 647 00:32:53,672 --> 00:32:56,575 are enlisting the help of traffic specialists, 648 00:32:56,708 --> 00:32:59,177 like those that Arcadis in Atlanta, Georgia. 649 00:33:02,447 --> 00:33:04,716 They design safe, smoothly flowing roads 650 00:33:04,850 --> 00:33:07,519 based on successful systems developed over decades 651 00:33:07,652 --> 00:33:09,087 in the US and Europe. 652 00:33:10,555 --> 00:33:14,125 - We regularly develop simulation models, 653 00:33:14,259 --> 00:33:16,761 which also become lifelike in being able 654 00:33:16,895 --> 00:33:20,098 to look at the roadway on a computer 655 00:33:20,232 --> 00:33:22,000 as we currently have designed it, 656 00:33:22,133 --> 00:33:23,935 we can create three dimensional models 657 00:33:24,069 --> 00:33:26,304 that we could communicate with our client. 658 00:33:26,438 --> 00:33:28,106 (upbeat music) 659 00:33:28,240 --> 00:33:29,708 - [Narrator] These models allow engineers 660 00:33:29,841 --> 00:33:32,611 to dissect the flaws of existing roads or highways 661 00:33:32,744 --> 00:33:33,945 and determine how they can refigure them 662 00:33:34,079 --> 00:33:35,881 to improve traffic flow. 663 00:33:36,014 --> 00:33:38,750 (upbeat music) 664 00:33:38,884 --> 00:33:41,052 A major focus of companies like Arcadis 665 00:33:41,186 --> 00:33:42,487 is urban intersections. 666 00:33:44,155 --> 00:33:47,459 Globally, most traffic accidents occur in intersections 667 00:33:47,592 --> 00:33:49,661 and design flaws of intersections in 668 00:33:49,794 --> 00:33:53,265 developing nations multiply the dangers. 669 00:33:53,398 --> 00:33:56,301 Many have no traffic signals, marked traffic lanes, 670 00:33:56,434 --> 00:34:01,406 sidewalks, or crosswalks, creating gridlock and chaos. 671 00:34:02,641 --> 00:34:03,775 - There is already so many congestion 672 00:34:03,909 --> 00:34:05,610 that everybody wants to get to their destination 673 00:34:05,744 --> 00:34:06,978 as soon as possible. 674 00:34:07,112 --> 00:34:10,248 So they kind of get frustrated and break the rules. 675 00:34:10,382 --> 00:34:11,483 - [Narrator] Case in point, 676 00:34:11,616 --> 00:34:14,152 this impatient bus driver in China. 677 00:34:14,286 --> 00:34:15,887 The traffic signal is red 678 00:34:16,021 --> 00:34:18,623 and there are several cars stopped in front of him. 679 00:34:18,757 --> 00:34:21,893 So he turns intentionally into oncoming traffic lanes 680 00:34:22,027 --> 00:34:24,930 and runs the light only luck prevents a collision. 681 00:34:26,331 --> 00:34:27,999 Can traffic engineers discourage stunts like this 682 00:34:28,133 --> 00:34:29,834 with effective intersection design? 683 00:34:31,036 --> 00:34:32,570 - As engineers, we try to lay out the road 684 00:34:32,704 --> 00:34:35,206 to properly convey to the traveling public 685 00:34:35,340 --> 00:34:38,209 through signing and marking what is approaching them 686 00:34:38,343 --> 00:34:41,947 at the intersection, a proper edge pavement delineation, 687 00:34:42,080 --> 00:34:43,748 right turn arrows, left turn arrows 688 00:34:43,882 --> 00:34:46,084 to delineate which lanes are through lanes, 689 00:34:46,217 --> 00:34:47,686 which lanes are left turn lanes, 690 00:34:47,819 --> 00:34:49,254 which lanes are right turn lanes. 691 00:34:49,387 --> 00:34:51,456 And then those are sequenced with the, 692 00:34:51,590 --> 00:34:54,326 the signal phases at the main intersection. 693 00:34:57,228 --> 00:34:59,264 - [Narrator] Adding well coordinated signal systems 694 00:34:59,397 --> 00:35:01,700 at problematic intersections like this one, 695 00:35:01,833 --> 00:35:04,369 not only help mitigate the danger to drivers, 696 00:35:04,502 --> 00:35:05,804 but also to pedestrians. 697 00:35:05,937 --> 00:35:08,173 (upbeat music) 698 00:35:08,306 --> 00:35:11,109 Deficient intersection design encourages jaywalking. 699 00:35:13,979 --> 00:35:17,082 And half of all traffic fatalities in developing nations 700 00:35:17,215 --> 00:35:18,516 involve pedestrians. 701 00:35:20,151 --> 00:35:22,520 - In addition to the roadway designed for vehicular traffic, 702 00:35:22,654 --> 00:35:26,024 we also try to put in elements of pedestrian access, 703 00:35:26,157 --> 00:35:28,360 like the sidewalk that I'm standing on now 704 00:35:28,493 --> 00:35:31,496 will provide proper pedestrian crosswalks 705 00:35:31,630 --> 00:35:34,232 and signalize free flowing movements for pedestrians 706 00:35:34,366 --> 00:35:36,034 will get their own signal phase as well. 707 00:35:36,167 --> 00:35:37,969 So that can safely and efficiently move the, 708 00:35:38,103 --> 00:35:40,105 the pedestrian safely through an intersection, 709 00:35:40,238 --> 00:35:41,406 avoiding conflict. 710 00:35:45,377 --> 00:35:47,212 Maybe the most unusual kind of dangerous drive 711 00:35:47,345 --> 00:35:49,314 is created by drivers who go to great lengths 712 00:35:49,447 --> 00:35:50,448 to be on it. 713 00:35:50,582 --> 00:35:55,453 (upbeat music) (car engines revving) 714 00:36:02,961 --> 00:36:04,996 A special breed of competitors like this bunch 715 00:36:05,130 --> 00:36:08,466 outside of Cedar City, Utah is pushing the boundaries 716 00:36:08,600 --> 00:36:10,301 of off-roading to new heights. 717 00:36:10,435 --> 00:36:15,407 (upbeat music) (car engines revving) 718 00:36:18,910 --> 00:36:20,512 They relish the challenge of maneuvering 719 00:36:20,645 --> 00:36:23,548 highly modified trucks or buggies over terrain 720 00:36:23,682 --> 00:36:26,051 that most casual off roaders would consider 721 00:36:26,184 --> 00:36:27,619 impossible to navigate. 722 00:36:27,752 --> 00:36:32,724 (upbeat music) (car engines revving) 723 00:36:33,224 --> 00:36:36,094 Their sport, aptly enough is called rock crawling. 724 00:36:38,563 --> 00:36:41,099 - It feels like a rollercoaster, every single course. 725 00:36:41,232 --> 00:36:43,234 You know, a lot of new people come out and watch 726 00:36:43,368 --> 00:36:44,602 and they think, man, this is insane 727 00:36:44,736 --> 00:36:46,037 and I can't believe you guys do this. 728 00:36:46,171 --> 00:36:47,706 - One thing that all these guys have in common 729 00:36:47,839 --> 00:36:51,910 is just going on a typical trail ride 730 00:36:52,043 --> 00:36:53,144 isn't quite enough for 'em. 731 00:36:53,278 --> 00:36:55,380 They wanna be pushed to do something extreme, 732 00:36:55,513 --> 00:36:58,116 not just go out and do the same thing everyone else is. 733 00:36:58,249 --> 00:37:00,118 (engine revving) 734 00:37:00,251 --> 00:37:02,454 And you start feeling comfortable 735 00:37:02,587 --> 00:37:04,322 being at 70 degree angles 736 00:37:04,456 --> 00:37:07,759 up or down and 50 degree angle sideways. 737 00:37:07,892 --> 00:37:09,427 - The competition is different 738 00:37:09,561 --> 00:37:12,197 because it's usually a rock pile someplace. 739 00:37:12,330 --> 00:37:15,667 And we're just trying to drive up the most extreme thing 740 00:37:15,800 --> 00:37:17,435 that the course designer can think of. 741 00:37:17,569 --> 00:37:20,605 (car engine roaring) 742 00:37:21,773 --> 00:37:23,675 - [Narrator] Nicole Johnson 743 00:37:23,808 --> 00:37:27,512 has been driving rock crawlers competitively since 2001. 744 00:37:27,645 --> 00:37:29,347 - I think it's really exciting actually, 745 00:37:29,481 --> 00:37:31,416 to be behind the wheel of this car 746 00:37:31,549 --> 00:37:32,750 when you're driving up a big rock, 747 00:37:32,884 --> 00:37:34,853 sometimes all you see is sky and clouds, 748 00:37:34,986 --> 00:37:36,521 or when you're coming off of something steep, 749 00:37:36,654 --> 00:37:39,224 you just see ground and you just hope you can run it out 750 00:37:39,357 --> 00:37:40,258 and not roll in. 751 00:37:41,659 --> 00:37:43,695 - [Frank] Okay drive forward, three wheel. 752 00:37:43,828 --> 00:37:45,997 - [Narrator] Nicole, like every driver in rock crawling 753 00:37:46,131 --> 00:37:49,000 depends on a spotter to act as a second set of eyes 754 00:37:49,134 --> 00:37:50,935 and direct the overall effort. 755 00:37:51,069 --> 00:37:52,470 - Rough over there, we're backing down. 756 00:37:52,604 --> 00:37:55,373 - [Narrator] Nicole's spotter is her husband, Frank. 757 00:37:55,507 --> 00:37:57,675 - There's just little cues that you look for 758 00:37:57,809 --> 00:38:00,445 in the suspension and the way the car's built 759 00:38:00,578 --> 00:38:03,047 that you could kind of tell that, oh, okay, we got it 760 00:38:03,181 --> 00:38:04,816 or now we gotta back off. 761 00:38:04,949 --> 00:38:06,518 - Steer me. - Okay, stop. 762 00:38:06,651 --> 00:38:08,219 - The driver might get all of the glory, 763 00:38:08,353 --> 00:38:10,388 but it's the spotter that does all the work. 764 00:38:10,522 --> 00:38:11,923 The spotter's the poor guy 765 00:38:12,056 --> 00:38:13,825 that's gotta run around the vehicle and pulling on ropes 766 00:38:13,958 --> 00:38:16,661 and stacking rocks and pointing us where we need to go. 767 00:38:19,831 --> 00:38:21,599 - [Narrator] The spotters face the greatest dangers 768 00:38:21,733 --> 00:38:22,567 in rock crawling. 769 00:38:23,401 --> 00:38:25,103 (car engine revving) 770 00:38:25,236 --> 00:38:27,038 - No this way, straighten your wheel. 771 00:38:28,873 --> 00:38:30,575 - [Narrator] Especially in the all too likely event 772 00:38:30,708 --> 00:38:31,509 of a rollover. 773 00:38:33,344 --> 00:38:35,880 - Spotters, falling down cliffs and hurting their legs 774 00:38:36,014 --> 00:38:37,615 or their knees or any part of their body, really. 775 00:38:37,749 --> 00:38:39,918 If the spotter is in a baddest position, 776 00:38:40,051 --> 00:38:41,753 they could get run over it. 777 00:38:41,886 --> 00:38:44,956 (car engine revving) 778 00:38:46,157 --> 00:38:47,325 - [Narrator] For Nicole and Frank, 779 00:38:47,458 --> 00:38:50,461 the secret to minimizing the danger is trust 780 00:38:50,595 --> 00:38:51,696 and good communication. 781 00:38:53,798 --> 00:38:54,599 - [Frank] Drive forward. 782 00:38:54,732 --> 00:38:56,501 - [Nicole] Doesn't feel right. 783 00:38:56,634 --> 00:38:57,335 - [Frank] Drive forward. 784 00:38:57,468 --> 00:38:58,269 There you go. 785 00:38:58,403 --> 00:38:59,504 - You really have to trust. 786 00:38:59,637 --> 00:39:00,972 Sometimes the car feels really weird. 787 00:39:01,105 --> 00:39:02,774 Feels like you're gonna roll when you're really not. 788 00:39:02,907 --> 00:39:04,309 And he can tell if it's going to. 789 00:39:04,442 --> 00:39:05,877 - [Frank] Rear dig down, rear dig down. 790 00:39:06,010 --> 00:39:07,312 - Down this way. - Yeah. 791 00:39:07,445 --> 00:39:10,014 Your ass end has to be that way, Nicole. 792 00:39:10,148 --> 00:39:11,182 - [Nicole] I'm trying, Frank. 793 00:39:11,316 --> 00:39:12,250 - Our way of dealing with it, 794 00:39:12,417 --> 00:39:14,319 maybe we yell at each other. 795 00:39:14,452 --> 00:39:16,421 Work left, go left now, go left. 796 00:39:16,554 --> 00:39:17,889 All the way left, work in left. 797 00:39:18,022 --> 00:39:19,123 - [Nicole] That's right. 798 00:39:19,257 --> 00:39:20,825 - Go right, whatever that is. 799 00:39:20,959 --> 00:39:22,794 But it it's a all, you know, 800 00:39:22,927 --> 00:39:24,362 water under the bridge at that point, 801 00:39:24,495 --> 00:39:25,897 we're here to have fun. 802 00:39:26,030 --> 00:39:27,832 And that's what about, we had a lot of fights today, 803 00:39:27,966 --> 00:39:31,436 but you know, we're smiling (laughs) so. 804 00:39:31,569 --> 00:39:32,270 - It's all good. 805 00:39:32,403 --> 00:39:33,571 - It's good. 806 00:39:33,705 --> 00:39:34,939 - [Narrator] Beyond good teamwork, 807 00:39:35,073 --> 00:39:37,242 competitors counter the sport's inherent dangers 808 00:39:37,375 --> 00:39:38,309 with technology. 809 00:39:40,345 --> 00:39:42,447 - Your dangers are really high. 810 00:39:42,580 --> 00:39:44,148 If you're not wearing your proper safety harnesses, 811 00:39:44,282 --> 00:39:46,517 if you're not wearing your helmet or fire suits 812 00:39:46,651 --> 00:39:49,654 or anything like that, the danger is always there. 813 00:39:49,787 --> 00:39:51,456 It's any kind of Motorsport. 814 00:39:51,589 --> 00:39:54,592 (car engine revving) 815 00:39:56,794 --> 00:39:58,496 - Rock crawling is a very dangerous sport. 816 00:39:58,630 --> 00:40:00,465 We do treat it with respect. 817 00:40:00,598 --> 00:40:02,533 We make sure that we have the best of the best 818 00:40:02,667 --> 00:40:04,802 as far as a suspension seat, 819 00:40:04,936 --> 00:40:06,871 the strongest seat belts that we can get. 820 00:40:08,640 --> 00:40:10,108 - [Narrator] And these modified monsters, 821 00:40:10,241 --> 00:40:14,812 also sports specialized tires available only for competitors 822 00:40:14,946 --> 00:40:16,347 tailor made for the task. 823 00:40:17,582 --> 00:40:18,716 - These are not your normal street tires. 824 00:40:18,850 --> 00:40:20,785 These are 37 inch Maxxis Trepadors. 825 00:40:20,918 --> 00:40:22,754 And as you can see, just by the tread, 826 00:40:22,887 --> 00:40:23,988 they're ultra sticky. 827 00:40:24,122 --> 00:40:25,690 And this is what keeps us cling to those rocks 828 00:40:25,823 --> 00:40:28,092 on those side hills, on those big climbs, 829 00:40:28,226 --> 00:40:29,560 this is what gets us up there. 830 00:40:29,694 --> 00:40:32,830 (car engine revving) 831 00:40:32,964 --> 00:40:34,565 - [Narrator] But it's more than just enormous tires 832 00:40:34,699 --> 00:40:36,734 that get these buggies around these rocks. 833 00:40:38,169 --> 00:40:40,872 It also takes state-of-the-art suspension systems. 834 00:40:45,343 --> 00:40:48,012 - The suspension is known as a 4-link, as you can see, 835 00:40:48,146 --> 00:40:49,514 there are two lower trailing arms 836 00:40:49,647 --> 00:40:50,848 and two upper trailing arms. 837 00:40:50,982 --> 00:40:52,317 Those upper trailing arms are actually 838 00:40:52,483 --> 00:40:54,519 what locate the axle underneath the vehicle. 839 00:40:54,652 --> 00:40:57,755 And then the lowers simply provide support. 840 00:40:57,889 --> 00:41:00,591 This particular suspension gives us great movement up 841 00:41:00,725 --> 00:41:03,594 and down for wheel travel and really helps us cling to those 842 00:41:03,728 --> 00:41:06,130 hard side hills and those nasty crawling sections. 843 00:41:07,966 --> 00:41:09,434 - [Narrator] And specialized brake controls 844 00:41:09,567 --> 00:41:12,570 allow independent operation of the front and rear brakes. 845 00:41:14,806 --> 00:41:17,175 While most of us do the best we can to avoid danger 846 00:41:17,308 --> 00:41:20,812 when we're behind the wheel, these thrill-seekers pursue it 847 00:41:22,313 --> 00:41:23,581 and savor its taste. 848 00:41:23,715 --> 00:41:25,083 (upbeat music) 849 00:41:25,216 --> 00:41:27,819 - When you're hanging off these cliffs and you're, you know, 850 00:41:27,952 --> 00:41:30,021 looking down, ready to roll a vehicle 851 00:41:31,255 --> 00:41:33,391 or you're leaning sideways and having to, you know, 852 00:41:33,524 --> 00:41:34,959 pull an awesome save. 853 00:41:35,093 --> 00:41:37,261 Trust me, there's a ton of adrenaline 854 00:41:37,395 --> 00:41:38,529 going through your body. 855 00:41:38,663 --> 00:41:39,564 - I think you have to be a little bit 856 00:41:39,697 --> 00:41:41,132 of an adrenaline junkie, 857 00:41:41,265 --> 00:41:45,269 and I can't think of any other sport that I would rather do. 858 00:41:46,437 --> 00:41:48,172 - [Narrator] For these extreme athletes, 859 00:41:48,306 --> 00:41:50,508 the more clear and present danger may lurk, 860 00:41:50,641 --> 00:41:54,445 where they rejoin the rest of us on the established roads. 861 00:41:58,649 --> 00:42:00,852 No need to seek out danger here, 862 00:42:01,853 --> 00:42:04,389 sooner or later, it will find us. 863 00:42:04,522 --> 00:42:06,424 (crash) 864 00:42:06,557 --> 00:42:09,627 - [Officer] Just like that, see, just like that.