Stopping

"I almost lost my life at West Fourth and Blenheim in Vancouver this morning" reported a DriveSmartBC Twitter follower. "I was turning left. The traffic lights were red for the traffic on Fourth. I stopped for the stop sign on Blenheim, then moved into the intersection to make my turn. The vehicle approaching me from the opposite direction was speeding and didn't even slow down for the stop sign. She went straight through!"

When my father-in-law from Quebec visited us here in B.C. years ago he was impressed with the idea of the overhead sign with flashing amber lights marked Prepare to Stop prior to signalized intersections. He thought that these signs made it much easier for the driver to prepare for a safe stop in advance of the signal changing to red. At that time this type of signal was not used where he lived.

According to the Association of School Transportation Services of British Columbia, travel by school bus is statistically the safest method of ground transportation in Canada and by a substantial margin. I’m sure that we all expect and demand nothing less when our children and grandchildren are riding those buses to and from schools and school related events. Surely all drivers should understand this and not hesitate to stop when the red lights on a stopped bus are flashing.

Parking lots are a bit different. On one hand, they are private property but on the other the public is invited to use them so they qualify as a highway under the Motor Vehicle Act. This means that you must obey all the usual driving rules, including stopping at stop signs. This driver appears to feel that the bigger truck gets to go first, regardless of the stop sign.

Would you believe me if I told you that the positioning of a stop sign at an intersection has nothing to do with where you must stop? Yes, the sign tells you that you must stop, but the markings on the roadway, or lack of them, tell you where the stop has to take place. There are four possibilities for a driver to consider.