Driving on our wintry roads is tough enough without some moron racing up to slide in behind the back bumper of our vehicles and cruising mere metres away.
It’s a rear-end collision waiting to happen.
We are continuously bombarded with information and warnings about winter driving, and all of it urges motorists to use common sense – slow down, drive to the road conditions and show some patience.
So why don’t these tailgaters and crazies who pass on corners get the message?
Many of us in the South Cariboo use Highway 97 on an almost daily basis, and at times, it feels like you’re driving into some futuristic death race.
We have talked to a number of people who use the highway regularly and they all report having nervous encounters with other drivers – not just this winter, but more often than not, they tell tales of what happened just the other day.
It gets worse when the sun goes down on our snowy roads where we have already lost visual contact with the centreline and the shoulder lines. Visibility is further hampered by darkness or blowing snow.
Normally, under these conditions, cautious drivers would slow down until they are operating at a comfortable speed with confidence of having the vehicle under control.
Inevitably, these motorists are going to have an impatient driver start tailgating, flicking their high beams on and off, and generally being miffed about being delayed in their race against time to get wherever they’re going as fast as they can.
Often these drivers won’t pass even when there is a passing lane, apparently preferring to terrorize the slower drivers instead.
So, what can we do about it?
First, when it’s safe to do so, we can slowly decelerate, not brake, just slow down enough for the tailgaters to get the message they’ll have to pass if they don’t want to slow down.
If that doesn’t work, be observant and get as much detail about the vehicle that’s being operated in an irrational manner. Then pull over when it’s safe to do so, call 9-1-1 and report the details to the dispatcher.
The RCMP doesn’t want these clowns on the road any more than we do. They’ll pull these drivers over, and at the very least, talk to them long enough to slow them down.
