Collisions

Question: I need some advice on a ticket for falling asleep at the wheel. I dozed off while driving home from work at 1:00 in the afternoon after doing a few late night / early morning shifts. I drove off the road and struck a guardrail doing damage to the truck. RCMP attended and wrote me up for "driving without consideration." I was told it would be $196 fine.

This incident took place at the intersection of Canada Way and Rosewood Street in Burnaby. It involved three vehicles, two of which changed lanes as their drivers did not want to wait for left turning traffic ahead of them. Those lane changes resulted in a crash involving the third vehicle traveling straight through using the right lane.

This case arises from a car vs bicycle collision on 116 Street in North Delta at the onset of night. Manjit Dhaliwal and a friend were cycling northbound on 116 Street between 94 and 96 Avenues. Neither bicycle was equipped with a light. Sonia Kakkar was backing out of her driveway, did not see the cyclists and collided with Ms. Dhaliwal.

Imagine the surprise of the motorist at a collision I once investigated. He parked at the side of the road, opened his door, and a passing car tried to tear it off! It's a good thing he didn't step out while he opened the door.

It is fortunate that this type of collision is relatively rare because the consequences are severe. I am speaking of driving the wrong way on a divided highway or freeway.

Joseph Munden and Ephrahim Barnett used to be neighbours, did not care for each other and were not on good terms. This case results from Mr. Munden using his vehicle as a weapon and intentionally colliding with Mr. Barnett who was riding his bicycle.

Why are drivers mistaking the gas for the brake? I could not rationalize this error after reading another news story where a driver in a parking lot had driven into a building with significant force. Surely the driver must have known that this was going to happen and could have prevented it.

The case of Tataryn v Browne involves a single vehicle rollover crash on Long Lake Road near Kamloops. Farm workers riding in the box of the pickup truck at the time of the crash were injured. Debra Browne found that the owner's responsibility for their vehicle meant that she was vicariously liable for damages.

The case of Legere v Harvey involves liability for two crashes on Highway 97 at Gallagher Lake north of Oliver. The first crash was between a southbound Mazda 3 driven by Gail Harvey and a deer. The second crash occurred immediately after between Ms. Harvey's Mazda 3 and a northbound Dodge Ram driven by Ryan Legere.

Occasionally you may find yourself waiting in a long line of vehicles for extended periods because a crash has temporarily shut down a highway. Here are some insights as to why the RCMP, working with the area highways contractor, has closed the road.