Driver on PIE right-most lane seen yawning & using phone before hitting side of van

A Honda driver on the right-most lane of the Pan-Island Expressway (PIE) was seen yawning, taking her hands off the steering wheel and allegedly using her handphone while behind the wheel on Nov. 14.

She ended up veering left and colliding with a van on the adjacent lane, knocking off a side-view mirror in the process.

The incident

The incident was captured in dashcam footage from a car in front, and was shared to social media on Nov. 15.

According to the post, the incident happened on the PIE towards Tuas, near the Toh Guan Road exit at around 3:50pm on Nov. 14.

Along a stretch of congested road, the driver of a grey Honda Odyssey was seen yawning behind the wheel while driving on the right-most lane.

It was not clear if her hands were on the steering wheel at this point.

About 15 seconds later, as the car was moving, the driver held up an item that appeared to be a phone with her right hand and looked at it.

She slowed down in the lane as she did so.

Shortly after, the driver braked to a halt even as other vehicles continued moving and stretched out her arms behind her head briefly.

As she resumed driving, the car veered to the left, encroached into the next lane and collided with a white van.

This knocked off the van's right side-view mirror.

The woman then swerved back into her lane, came to a stop, and then moved her hands towards the dashboard as if to place something there.

She also switched on her hazard lights for about 10 seconds before moving off.

The driver with the dash cam said the Honda driver took the Jurong Town Hall Road exit after the accident.

"I honked at [the] driver but was ignored," the driver said.

Multitasking while sleepy?

Many commenters felt the woman was living dangerously by allegedly using her phone while driving,

Others pointed out that if she was feeling sleepy to begin with, she should have not taken the fastest lane on the expressway.

A few accused the woman of a hit-and-run, as she seemed to have driven off without addressing the matter of the collision with the van driver.

It is an offence under Singapore law to use a handphone while driving.

The offence carries a penalty of 12 demerit points and a S$400 composition fine, according to the Singapore Police Force.

Singapore's Highway Code advises those who are tired or unwell to refrain from driving.

Drivers are also advised to use two hands to hold the steering wheel whenever their vehicle is in motion.

Top image from SGRV/Facebook