Information related to driver behaviour.
Have you ever met anyone who would admit to being less than a better than average driver? The next time you are having a casual conversation in a group ask this question. Changes are good that the majority of the people there will rate themselves as better than average, something that is unlikely to be as half of us have to be less than average drivers.
I watched a commercial truck begin to leave the brake check as I approached the summit of Highway 4 outside of Port Alberni today. I knew that if the driver accelerated as he was entitled to I would have to follow him for a few kilometers of downhill grade at speeds significantly lower than the 80 km/h speed limit. I wasn't in a hurry, but I wasn't looking forward to this either.
What are we thinking about when we drive? More and more often I am convinced that we are thinking about anything but the driving task. Please be assured that when I say this I am giving drivers credit that they know how to drive properly in the first place.
We all like to think that we are observant and as safe drivers, nothing should get by our eagle eyes. However, there is a feature of how our brain processes what we are seeing called situational blindness. This video from the UK is actually part of a cycling safety campaign and shows how much the scene in our visual field can change without us noticing.
Driver error is linked to 75% to 90% of road crashes. This Australian report shows that these errors do not happen on their own. They occur within a road system. That system shapes how people drive and how often mistakes happen.
Spring ahead this weekend as Daylight Saving Time begins for another year. However, watch out for a lack of spring in your step as you drive to work on Monday morning. The crash rate then is 23% higher than the crash rate of the preceding Monday according to the BCAA Traffic Safety Foundation.
Watch AT&T's new 10-minute documentary titled "The Last Text," featuring stories of real individuals whose lives have been adversely affected by texting behind the wheel.
Stay in Mantrol is an anti-speed campaign from the New Zealand Transport Agency. The following quote from their web site summarizes the campaign:
This report produced by the US Transportation Research Board's National Cooperative Highway Research Program (NCHRP) explores human factors principles and findings for consideration by highway designers and traffic engineers. The report is designed to help the non-expert in human factors to consider more effectively the roadway user’s capabilities and limitations in the design and operation of highway facilities.
A large majority of drivers have simply forgot about traffic laws, safety and respect for others. Daily, one can see many drivers traveling at 20-50 km/hr faster then the posted speed limits. The problem is so bad that some of us residents have formed a Concerned Residents Committee to help us voice our concerns for a solution to this on-going problem.