Not all heroes wear capes. Saving a life can be as simple as paying attention while driving.
When we’re behind the wheel, we can easily forget that we’re in control of a machine which can easily kill.
This road safety week we’ve been reminded of the ‘fatal 5’.
SPEEDING
SEAT BELTS
DRINK / DRUG DRIVING
FATIGUE
DISTRACTION
While these are a given, there are other things we could be doing while driving to reduce the incidence of accidents and frustration caused to other motorists.
Learning how to properly indicate on a roundabout would be a good start. There’s an unbelievably high proportion of motorists who incorrectly indicate right when going straight ahead. Check the Queensland Government transport page which states you only need to indicate left when you’re about to exit a roundabout when driving straight ahead. Of course, even more frustrating are those who don’t bother to indicate at all when turning.
The other simple courtesy is to keep left unless overtaking. In Queensland, it’s only law if the speed limit is sign posted at 90km/hr or above, or if there is a ‘keep left unless overtaking’ sign. However, in many other countries like the UK, drivers will adhere to this rule in all speed zones. When cars are only using right lanes when they need to, to overtake, the traffic flows better. There aren’t those blockages caused by that one person who sits in the right lane shadowing the person in the left lane, seemingly oblivious to the large lines of traffic backing up behind them.
It's also better for emergency services because the right-hand lane is clearer more often.
Being aware of others and paying attention while driving can go a long way towards happier roads for everyone.
Amanda
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