Behaviour

I glanced at the driver stopped beside me at a red light today. He was bending the rules, busily chatting with someone via the cell phone that he was holding to his ear with his right hand. A marked police vehicle pulled up to our right and stopped to wait for the red as well.

I hear many drivers these days talking amongst themselves how they stay in the fastest lane when the traffic is backed up. To avoid the line they then attempt to merge by getting as close to the lane as possible and to the vehicle in order to intimidate the driver to let them in.

I was walking to my vehicle after work yesterday and watched the woman on the sidewalk ahead of me approach the intersection. She did not hesitate to step into the crosswalk even though a vehicle on her left had stopped halfway across it waiting to enter traffic. The driver was watching intently to her left waiting for a gap in traffic. The pedestrian checked her stride and I thought that she was going to wait for the driver to notice her before she crossed in front of the vehicle.

Traffic Calming in my opinion is a good idea on paper but mostly ineffective in reality. Many municipalities are starting Traffic Calming measures however few are successful in achieving what is effective.

One of the most common responses that I received having stopped a driver for a traffic violation was a rationalization or justification for the behaviour I observed. The driver clearly knew that what they were doing was against the traffic laws but in their minds they were still being safe. Exceeding the speed limit, slowing down for stop signs, or even driving on the wrong side of the road could be excused because "No one else was around."

This 34 minute documentary on the perils of texting and driving was created by Werner Herzog, an award winning writer, director and producer. According to the documentary description, Xavier, Chandler, Debbie, and Reggie all know the horrors of texting & driving firsthand.

We were exposed to many ideas during training at the RCMP's Depot Division in Regina. A lecture that I do recall was presented by a pyschologist who taught us about transactional analysis. One of the life positions we learned about, I'm OK and you are not OK, seems to be common on our highways.

Choosing the speed to drive at on our highways is a highly controversial and individual decision. I would dare to say that the posted speed limit is only a guide for many drivers. For those drivers, the choice ranges from total disregard to the point that you decide what is 10 over from.

Taking away someone's privilege to drive is viewed as a drastic step in correcting driving behaviour. Currently, a fully licensed driver has to accumulate a significant number of points in a year before the Superintendent of Motor Vehicles takes steps to apply this penalty. In my experience, the traffic courts are also reluctant to take this step, saying "I'll leave that up to the Superintendent." when the officer prosecuting requests a prohibition as part of the penalty.

It’s an unfortunate reality in nearly every major city—road congestion, especially during rush hours. Jonas Eliasson reveals how subtly nudging just a small percentage of drivers to stay off major roads can make traffic jams a thing of the past.