DriveSmartBC

I was recently told a story by driver who stopped at an intersection and when checking for cross traffic was surprised to find a truck laying on the drivers side a short distance away. This driver assessed the situation and concluded that it had happened within the last few moments, a number of people had stopped to help and it appeared that the driver was out and shaken but unhurt. He turned right and drove away from the scene.

One of my old supervisors used to shake his head and say "$5.00 head, $5.00 helmet!" He was referring to Harley riders who wore "beanie" helmets that didn't do much more than hold the other ends of the chin straps.

At all hours of the day or night emergency vehicles will use their sirens. I live in a small quiet suburb and you can literally fire a cannon as they say, down the main road at night. It is not fun being awakened at 3 or 4 in the morning because of this. I can appreciate what these folks have to contend with as far as dumb drivers are concerned but in the early hours of the morning there are no cars.

I've got a suggestion: colour of exterior lights and reflectors. Lots of kids replace amber bulbs with blue, red ones with clear, red lenses with clear, amber reflectors with green, bulbs with LEDs, etc. I get a lot of heartbreaking letters from parents, "My kid just got a ticket...are blue parking lights really illegal?!"

Would you do a column on the importance of vehicle maintenance? Not only regarding upkeep of tires, fluids, brakes, or suspension, but also the importance of regularly checking to ensure all the lights on the vehicle are clean and in good working order.

Fortunately for us all, the majority of collisions in British Columbia don't involve injury or death. Rather they leave us feeling foolish and facing a significant dollar amount of property damage. How do you protect yourself in the event of a collision like this, especially since the police may not attend property damage or minor injury crashes?

A recent study by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety suggests that the declining death rate in vehicle crashes since 1994 is due to the protection provided by improvements in automotive design. It is not due to enforcement, changes in highway design standards or increased driver competence. It comments on our increasingly hazardous traffic environment and cautions against the increased travel speeds favoured by today's drivers.

What is definition of street racing and what to do when you see street racers?

In Penticton there is a left hand turning lane from Fairview Road onto the Channel Parkway. Industrial Avenue intersects Fairview Road close to that intersection. Often if there is a line up of cars in the left hand turning lane, some will leave a space for cars to go through from Industrial onto Fairview. I wondered if this is what you are supposed to do or if this just makes it more dangerous because those passing through onto Fairview may not be able to see traffic from the other lane on Fairview.

Is there a difference between the helmet laws which make it law to wear a helmet on a bicycle,and the wearing of one on a motorcycle? The reason I ask is that I ride both a motorcycle and a bicycle.