TAIPEI (Taiwan News) -- A video was released yesterday (June 21) on YouTube showing an impatient scooter rider recklessly passing both a police car and a large truck in a no passing zone on a narrow, two-lane mountain road, causing a heated discussion among netizens.
In the dashcam video, posted by YouTube user Curtis Ke yesterday, a police car can be seen with a large truck carrying a bulky load slowly lumbering in front of it. Suddenly, a man on a scooter with a female passenger on the back appears in the frame as they pass Ke's vehicle from the right-hand shoulder, what would be considered illegal in many countries, but is acceptable in Taiwan.
Not satisfied with the pace of the police car in front of him, and despite the fact that center lines clearly indicate that it is a no passing zone, the scooter rider then puts the pedal to the metal and barrels past both the police car and large truck, risking both his own life and that of his passenger on the narrow, twisting mountain road.
Seconds after the scooter rider brazenly flouts the law, the police car immediately pulls him over to issue him a citation for violating a basic traffic regulation.
After posting the video, Ke wrote on his Facebook that he "really doesn't know what the driver had eaten to make him so brave to pass cars like this."
Many netizens mocked the careless scooter rider:
"He thought that the policeman was a vegetarian."
"The moment I saw it I had to laugh."
"Did he think that was just a neighborhood watchman?"
"Taking a big risk to go the wrong way can lead to instant demise."
Though some also questioned the policeman's actions:
"The police car also passed the truck blind, even if that was a traffic violation, he too should pay attention to safety, what if a vehicle suddenly came from the other direction?"
"The way the police handled the situation was not appropriate, he should have first waited until he reached a straight stretch of road and turn on his sirens, and then confirmed that there were no vehicles coming in the other lane before passing! And not passing the truck right when it's entering a sharp bend, this is too dangerous!"