If you’ve ever driven down the highway through a mountainous region, you’ve likely seen the long gravel runway-looking ramps extending off of the side of the road. These are not just for the government’s cooperation with an imminent alien invasion, but also to help truckers stop when all else fails.
In the video below posted by the California Department of Transportation, you see exactly what happens when a Big Rig can’t stop under the power of its own brakes:
Basically, it crashes into a steep slop of gravel. That’s much better than a fully-loaded truck tipping through a corner at highway speeds, instead isolating the out-of-control trailer from the rest of traffic and likely saving the driver’s life, and others, in the process.
In this case, this trucker was really coming in hot and it’s really impressive to see how a simple thing like a hill covered in rocks can prevent a catastrophe.