After many horrific motor vehicle crashes in our province comes a call for highway improvements.
For the most part, the call should be for driver improvements instead.
Travelling past the site of one such recent incident in my neighbourhood, it struck me that inappropriate speed, failing to maintain space margins, lack of lane discipline and poor communication needs to be improved before the highway does.
It almost goes without saying that the majority of the drivers have difficulty following speed limits.
This is a particularly poor practice when the road conditions are not ideal, yet you will often see vehicles speeding and passing when traction is less than optimal. Travel speeds below the posted limit may be called for to maintain safe travel.
Space margins and lane discipline go hand in hand. Tailgating, changing lanes too closely in front of following vehicles and failing to maintain a clear space in the adjacent lane to leave yourself an out are commonly observed in daily driving.
Add the inability to always maintain a proper lane position and the risk of collision rises.
When is the last time that you saw a driver who failed to signal? Chances are you see this every day.
You may also notice that much of the signalling is done after the vehicle starts to make the signalled move. This is really wasted information, as the signal needs to be made well before the move so that other drivers may prepare for it.
Before you complain about the highway, make sure it is not yourself that is the greater hazard!
For more information on this topic, visit www.drivesmartbc.ca. Questions or comments are welcome by e-mail to comments@drivesmartbc.ca. Tim Schewe is a retired RCMP constable with many years of traffic law enforcement experience. His column appears Friday.
