Jump to content

Road Safety


Stubby

Recommended Posts

Bad driving is endemic here in my part of Canada. Stricter enforcement of driving regulations was tried along with licences being made harder to get. Unfortunately, all that happened was that a black market developed so that those who could not drive obtained fraudulent licences. The insurance rates here are the highest in the country as staged accidents have pushed up claims. I personally know two people at work who were victims of such accidents. People stop at an intersection to make a left turn, while opposite them another driver, waiting to turn right, "kindly" waves the left turner through, and then crashes into them, making the person turning left at fault for the accident. Ten people then climb out of the ca,r writhing in pain, and ready to collect a huge settlement. My wife got mad at me when one such driver tried to do the same to me and I muttered under my breath that "that asshole should learn to drive." He's being nice, I was told.


Link to comment
Share on other sites

Bad driving is endemic here in my part of Canada. Stricter enforcement of driving regulations was tried along with licences being made harder to get. Unfortunately, all that happened was that a black market developed so that those who could not drive obtained fraudulent licences. The insurance rates here are the highest in the country as staged accidents have pushed up claims. I personally know two people at work who were victims of such accidents. People stop at an intersection to make a left turn, while opposite them another driver, waiting to turn right, "kindly" waves the left turner through, and then crashes into them, making the person turning left at fault for the accident. Ten people then climb out of the ca,r writhing in pain, and ready to collect a huge settlement. My wife got mad at me when one such driver tried to do the same to me and I muttered under my breath that "that asshole should learn to drive." He's being nice, I was told.

One of my pet peeves is drivers who wave you on even when you don't have right of way. That, tailgating, and changing lanes without signalling drive me nuts. Aaaaarrrggghh.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

True, but we're only human. Bring on the driverless cars.

ETA: Developing computerized systems to assist and eventually replace drivers is going to be a lot easier than getting every driver to pay full attention to their car and surroundings and at all times without getting fatigued. Unless you're willing to give everyone meth or something.

Oh yes, I agree. People suck at driving and slow everyone down and make everything more dangerous. I am ALL FOR driverless cars!! But until they are here, I will continue to hope people will learn how to drive (and deploy my finger as appropriate to help them learn :)).

Link to comment
Share on other sites

NYC just lowered the speed limit on city streets from 35MPH to 25MPH in the name of safety but with all the speed cameras popping up around the city I think it is more of a money grab.

I don't give a fuck what the reason is, if there are fewer dead cyclists and pedestrians, then I am happy.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I don't give a fuck what the reason is, if there are fewer dead cyclists and pedestrians, then I am happy.

Well said.

Some more depressing stats released today reveal that we have had 9 more motorcycle deaths this year than last year. Whilst there can be no douct that excessive speed (of the motorcycle) was a factor in many of these accidents, it seems that many were caused by drivers simply not seeing the motorcycle in the first place. Inattention is one thing that I am seeing more and more often.

Grrr.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

When I was passing my motorcycle licence years ago, I was told: "Always assume cars do not see you". It's not a new thing. Are you really seeing a significant sustained increase, or are those accidents subject to random spikes?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

There was an error in my post - we are at 6 more deaths thn during all of last year.





When I was passing my motorcycle licence years ago, I was told: "Always assume cars do not see you". It's not a new thing. Are you really seeing a significant sustained increase, or are those accidents subject to random spikes?





As to the first point, trainers teach the same thing here.



As to the second, it could be a random spike, but the current year stats are enough to have the Motorcycle Riders Association of WA concerned.



Further to my inattention comment above, this article has been published today, incidentally involving a moment of inattention that killed two motorcyclists.


Link to comment
Share on other sites

When I was passing my motorcycle licence years ago, I was told: "Always assume cars do not see you". It's not a new thing. Are you really seeing a significant sustained increase, or are those accidents subject to random spikes?

Hell, as a road cyclist, I take it one further. "Always assume motorist are outright trying to kill you"

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I always assume that a cyclist will have a death wish and will attempt to swerve in front of me or jump the traffic lights.

My indicators have a bit of a fault at the moment, so I've been using hand signals when they're not working properly. Most people just ignore me. We learn hand signals for a reason, and anyway it doesn't take the brains of an archbishop to work out what they mean. I could just act like the other dickheads and not indicate at all.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I always assume that a cyclist will have a death wish and will attempt to swerve in front of me or jump the traffic lights.

My indicators have a bit of a fault at the moment, so I've been using hand signals when they're not working properly. Most people just ignore me. We learn hand signals for a reason, and anyway it doesn't take the brains of an archbishop to work out what they mean. I could just act like the other dickheads and not indicate at all.

I've seen cyclists go through red lights at dangerous intersections on more than one occasion. I think if someone wants to ride a bike they should be made to take a safety class, have some sort of insurance and register their bikes.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I've seen cyclists go through red lights at dangerous intersections on more than one occasion. I think if someone wants to ride a bike they should be made to take a safety class, have some sort of insurance and register their bikes.

I agree. It's likely that my car will do a lot more damage to a cyclist than they will to me, and that worries me. I'd hate to be responsible for that, even if it wasn't my fault. A lot of them do fly around like they're invincible - it's no wonder there are so many accidents. Just today, an old lady on a bike pulled out of a junction right in front of me. I had to swerve to avoid her, as I wouldn't have had time to stop. I felt like getting out and giving her a piece of my mind; I nearly had a bloody heart attack.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I agree. It's likely that my car will do a lot more damage to a cyclist than they will to me, and that worries me. I'd hate to be responsible for that, even if it wasn't my fault. A lot of them do fly around like they're invincible - it's no wonder there are so many accidents. Just today, an old lady on a bike pulled out of a junction right in front of me. I had to swerve to avoid her, as I wouldn't have had time to stop. I felt like getting out and giving her a piece of my mind; I nearly had a bloody heart attack.

Not terribly long ago something similar happened to me. I had a green light and someone thought they had enough time and crossed against the light and I nearly hit them.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

There was an error in my post - we are at 6 more deaths thn during all of last year.

As to the first point, trainers teach the same thing here.

As to the second, it could be a random spike, but the current year stats are enough to have the Motorcycle Riders Association of WA concerned.

Further to my inattention comment above, this article has been published today, incidentally involving a moment of inattention that killed two motorcyclists.

I find it almost impossible to ride a motorcycle slowly.This combined with the amount of idiots on the roads in cars have meant that I've given up road riding in favor of track only.Can't say I miss riding on the road.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

OP: familiarity --> complacency




When did it become fashionable for cyclists to continue through red lights without even pausing? (and I don't just mean to turn right on red).


I walk to and from the office and I've had a few near misses where cyclists seem to think that pedestrians should stop/pause (despite having right of way with a traffic signal) to allow the cyclist to continue through the junction without stopping at their red light.



The growth of rental bikes in Chicago has led to a lot of cyclists who don't understand their responsibilities on the road. And that's before I even start on the ones cycling on the sidewalk.


Link to comment
Share on other sites

Archived

This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.

×
×
  • Create New...