Several years ago I survived the driver training course for United Parcel Service (yeah, wore the Brown). I'm an 'avid motorist' and that training is tougher than I ever could have predicted - and I learned a lot. As a trained truck driver, there's almost never an excuse for any type of incident. This question -"was there any any anything the driver could have done differently to avoid this situation?" - is how UPS decides if you keep your job after an incident (usually, no, you don't). Now we are not discussing a fender-bender or a toppled mailbox. This truck driver rear-ended and killed people on a clear day and open road. Lane or shoulder is moot. Unless the brakes AND steering simultaneously failed at precisely the moment of approach, there's no excuse. Pretty safe prediction that this driver will do jail time for involuntary manslaughter, given the severity of the case. I. Certainly. Hope.