Video shows Pittsburgh-area man driving in reverse on main road
A driver in Fayette County was spotted going in reverse on a main road.
Shane Williams told KDKA-TV it all started after he got a call from his mother that his cousin's car broke down in the Walmart parking lot in Uniontown.
"I came up to Walmart and tried to fix it, see what was going on with it, and the only gear that worked was reverse," Williams said.
Williams, who has a background as a mechanic, said the transmission went out in the car.
"It wouldn't go in gear. When I put it in gear, it wouldn't go forward at all. It was just revving up real high," Williams said. "So, we were sitting there for a little bit. It was raining. We had my little cousin in the car, my mom in the car, so I was like, well, just follow me and I'll drive it backwards home."
Shocking video shows man driving in reverse in Fayette County
With his family following behind him, Williams said he started driving in reverse from Walmart to Route 40 to the Fayette Bank Building in downtown.
"I had them follow in front of me, so nobody got in front of me and kind of made it safe," Williams said.
KDKA-TV asked Williams why he decided to drive it in reverse rather than calling a towing company.
"Why not call a tow truck? You know, it didn't cross my mind at the time, and I was just in a rush. And I'm like, I don't want to sit here and wait. I have my little cousin with me, my mom with me. We had groceries in the car. Tow trucks around here take a quite time to get to you. So, by the time they get here, I can have it at home," Williams said.
The entire journey was caught on video.
"I don't think there's a law stating that you can't drive backwards. There might be now," Williams said.
Williams told KDKA-TV that he made it home safely.
"I didn't think there was a law for driving backwards as long as I followed the laws of the road. So, I used my turn signals. I stopped at every light and drove it backwards home," Williams said.
Is it illegal to drive in reverse?
Pennsylvania State Police in Uniontown said this incident is not currently under investigation. A spokesperson said driving in reverse is illegal, as it interferes with traffic and is considered careless driving.
State police ask that anyone who sees someone driving in reverse call police.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Bloomberg
an hour ago
- Bloomberg
GM Dodges Tariffs With Production Shift to The US
General Motors plans to invest $4 billion in its US plants over the next two years in response to President Donald Trump's tariffs, which will expand factories in Michigan, Kansas, and Tennessee. GM's CFO Brian Jacobson spoke to Matt Miller about the production shift. (Source: Bloomberg)
CBS News
an hour ago
- CBS News
Minnesota Legislature approves increased electric vehicle fee to shore up funding for roads and bridges
Electric vehicle owners aren't paying at the gas pump, but they'll soon see higher fees in Minnesota, thanks to a new law doubling the surcharge for those cars to shore up funding for roads and bridges. The current $75 annual fee will double to at least $150. How much someone pays could be steeper if they have a more expensive, newer vehicle, similar to how the state calculates registration fees, which EV owners must still pay. For example, a new EV with a $50,000 retail price would mean a $250 fee based on that calculation, which is more than three times the current rate. The provision was part of a bipartisan transportation package that the divided Legislature approved during Monday's special session and the objective was to find a sustainable path forward for transportation at a time when gas tax revenue — a large source of that support — is declining, according to the Minnesota Department of Transportation. More electric vehicles on the road, which is the state's goal, will mean even fewer dollars flowing into that account in the future. "There's kind of an irony where we want more fuel-efficient vehicles, but that decreases the amount of money that's going into our roads and bridges to maintain them," said Rep. Jon Koznick, R-Lakeville, the Republican co-chair of the House Transportation Committee. "We have about a billion dollars a year funding gap just to maintain our roads and bridges. And so that's why electric vehicles were getting a really good deal before — they're still going to get a pretty good deal." Koznick explained he would have preferred to make the fee flat across the board and not use the formula that would increase the costs for newer vehicles, which he called "convoluted." But it was part of a compromise with Democrats in a divided Capitol, where bipartisan support was required to advance any legislation. EV owners should be paying higher fees because those cars are heavier and do more damage to the roads, he said. The new surcharge takes effect for car registrations after Jan. 1. There is also a new five-cent fee per kilowatt hour of electricity at public charging stations set to take effect in July 2027, at which point the annual surcharge minimum would drop from $150 to $100. Meanwhile, EV advocates are worried increased fees will make consumers pump the brakes on buying one when it's better for the environment. "We do have concerns that we could be discouraging adoption at this point, at a time when the state has said it really wants to support electrification and get more EVs on the roads," said Carolyn Berninger with Drive Electric Minnesota Coalition in a March interview. Only 1% of cars in Minnesota are electric today, Berninger said, but sales are increasing. Seven percent of cars purchased in 2023 were electric, according to the Minnesota Department of Commerce. The state's goal is that 20% of all cars are electric by 2030. "We feel like now is not the time to hike up EV fees because the market is still emerging," Berninger said. Pat O'Brien of St. Paul told WCCO Wednesday that he loves his electric vehicle that he's had for the last few years. He estimates he has saved thousands in that time by not having to pay for gas. He said he isn't quite sure how he feels about the changes. "I understand the reasoning behind why there should be a surcharge, but I'm not sure about this extra—this is news to me that there's yet two more charges," he said.
Associated Press
2 hours ago
- Associated Press
Trump is expected to sign a measure blocking California's nation-leading vehicle emissions rules
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump is expected to sign a measure Thursday that blocks California's first-in-the-nation rule banning the sale of new gas-powered cars by 2035, a White House official told The Associated Press. The resolution Trump plans to sign, which Congress approved last month, aims to quash the country's most aggressive attempt to phase out gas-powered cars. He also plans to approve measures to overturn state policies curbing tailpipe emissions in certain vehicles and smog-forming nitrogen oxide pollution from trucks. The timing of the signing was confirmed Wednesday by a White House official who spoke on condition of anonymity to share plans not yet public. The development comes as the Republican president is mired in a clash with California's Democratic governor, Gavin Newsom, over Trump's move to deploy troops to Los Angeles in response to immigration protests. It's the latest in an ongoing battle between the Trump administration and heavily Democratic California over everything from tariffs to the rights of LGBTQ+ youth and funding for electric vehicle chargers. According to the official, Trump is expected to sign resolutions that block California's rule phasing out gas-powered cars and ending the sale of new ones by 2035. He will also kill rules that phase out the sale of medium- and heavy-duty diesel vehicles and cut tailpipe emissions from trucks. The president is scheduled to sign the measures and make remarks during an event at the White House on Thursday morning. Newsom, who is considered a likely 2028 Democratic presidential candidate, and California officials contend that what the federal government is doing is illegal and said the state plans to sue. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy, Energy Secretary Chris Wright and Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Lee Zeldin are expected to attend, along with members of Congress and representatives from the energy, trucking and gas station industries. California, which has some of the nation's worst air pollution, has been able to seek waivers for decades from the EPA allowing it to adopt stricter emissions standards than the federal government. In his first term, Trump revoked California's ability to enforce its standards, but President Joe Biden reinstated it in 2022. Trump has not yet sought to revoke it again. Republicans have long criticized those waivers and earlier this year opted to use the Congressional Review Act, a law aimed at improving congressional oversight of actions by federal agencies, to try to block the rules. That's despite a finding from the U.S. Government Accountability Office, a nonpartisan congressional watchdog, that California's standards cannot legally be blocked using the Congressional Review Act. The Senate parliamentarian agreed with that finding. California, which makes up roughly 11% of the U.S. car market, has significant power to sway trends in the auto industry. About a dozen states signed on to adopt California's rule phasing out the sale of new gas-powered cars. The National Automobile Dealers Association supported the federal government's move to block California's ban on gas-powered cars, saying Congress should decide on such a national issue, not the state. The American Trucking Associations said the rules were not feasible and celebrated Congress' move to block them. Chris Spear, the CEO of the American Trucking Associations, said in a statement Wednesday: 'This is not the United States of California.' ___ Austin reported from Sacramento, Calif.
