Axle-F’ed: Remind Me Again Why Semis Need Those Nifty Double Tires — Is It Only So There’s A Backup In Case One Spins Away And Slams Into Us?

This is like my worst nightmare:

A massive double-tire flew off a moving big rig Tuesday evening on the Lower East Side, hurtling onto the sidewalk and striking a jogger.

The rolling tire also damaged an FDNY call box and shattered the plate-glass window of a Dunkin’ Donuts.

. . .

The tire “was going fast. The truck was going fast, too,” said passerby David Ferron, who called police after witnessing the incident at First Avenue and Sixth Street. “He was speeding down the street.”

The truck, an 18-wheel tractor-trailer, had not returned to the scene nearly a half hour after the jogger was struck about 8 p.m., Ferron said.

Police at the scene said the truck driver stopped several blocks up First Avenue, when he realized two of his tires were missing.