Behaviour

I've been riding as a passenger in heavy traffic this past week and have had time to watch and think about what is going on around me. There are many small things that a driver should do out of habit to minimize their chances of being involved in a collision.

Have you responded to our provincial government's request for feedback on the setting of fair ICBC rates yet? The hope is to "introduce changes to the current system to make insurance rates more fair for British Columbians by making all drivers more accountable for their decisions and driving behaviour." The implication here is that bad drivers don't pay their fair share of insurance premiums.

I’ve spent most of my 40+ years of driving in Metro Vancouver, but have also had the opportunity to drive in major cities in England, Greece, Egypt, and France. When I return from these trips, I’m always amazed at the level of hostility on our local roads. With the traffic density in these foreign cities much higher than in most North American cities, I expected to see a lot more hostility amongst drivers.

We just renewed the insurance on our car. It cost us $764 for basic insurance coverage on our 2013 Honda CR-V. I can hardly wait for next year to see what we will be paying to make up for this year's $935 million ICBC loss.

I've always been interested in driving and technology, so when I had the opportunity to combine the two, I jumped at it. eDriving provided access to their Mentor app for me to test. How would I measure up?

I installed the Mentor app on my tablet as I don't own a personal cell phone. The app is meant to be used on a cell phone but appeared to work properly on the tablet. It was just a bit awkward to put in my truck because of the size.

I've written before about the three Es of road safety, education, engineering and enforcement. The enforcement component was the subject of a comment to me concerning a visible police presence on our highways. The observation was that unmarked cars and what seems like minimal enforcement creates a "I can get away with it" mindset.

I don't try to be a bad driver, quite the opposite in fact, I try to do my best when I get behind the wheel. However, being human, I occasionally fail. So do we all. Hopefully that sets me apart from drivers who don't know any better, drivers who let their skills slip and drivers who really don't care.

This week ICBC rolled out a new road safety campaign called Drive Smart. It's aimed at increasing driver knowledge, promoting staying focused while driving and looking out for the safety of other road users. There is also a special social media hashtag: #KnowYourPartBC.

Perhaps the most effective way to improve road safety is by improving road user attitude. If selfish and unsafe behaviours can be shown as detrimental and users convinced to choose what is beneficial on their own reaching our Vision Zero targets have a better chance of being successful. Some people are willing to change their outlook when it makes sense to do so, but we also share the road with those who are not willing.

It's not nice to take vicarious pleasure from the troubles of other drivers, but sometimes I can't help myself. Yesterday I found myself #3 in line waiting for a red light to turn green at an intersection. The vehicle in front of me was a shiny Porsche Boxster convertible driven by a mature male. The light turned green and he stalled it.