Everything Traffic Safety
Last week I was accused of reinforcing ignorance for what I wrote or, more accurately, didn’t write about stopping in a roadway. And the person had a point. In case you missed it, I stated that “If you’re not coming up to a stop sign or traffic light, following the directions of a police officer, …
Continue reading “A Few More Times When it’s Okay to Stop in the Road”
Q: On my morning commute I often find myself behind a certain car that comes to a complete stop, not at stoplights, to let other cars enter from side roads and driveways. Ostensibly, the driver is doing this to be polite, but she’s really backing things up. The other day another car honked at her …
Q: I was in a no injury accident on I-5. Traffic came to an abrupt stop and I was rear-ended. Damage to the other car was extensive and needed to be towed. We both called his insurance company but no police were called. I waited with him for a tow truck for 20 minutes and …
Continue reading “Getting A Ticket In The Mail After A Crash”
Q: The distracted driving law has an exception for commercial drivers, but what is the definition of that? I drive a box truck used for construction. It’s registered in the company name and has the company name all over it. I have a regular driver license. On any given day, I receive a minimum of ten …
Continue reading “Distracted Driving for Commercial Drivers”
This week’s column isn’t prompted by a question; instead, it’s inspired by the calendar. If you’ve followed this column on a semi-regular basis you may have noticed that the topics sometimes correspond to events and seasons – rules about school buses at the start of the school year, impaired driving during the holidays – those …
Continue reading “Daylight Saving – The Next Traffic Disaster?”
Q: At the rail crossings at Slater Road and at Grandview Road, what is the requirement for trucks carrying hazardous materials? It makes sense that they stop at uncontrolled crossings, but why do they have to stop when there are crossing signals? Is it a company regulation? At the Grandview crossing they stop empty going …
Q: What kind of lighting is required to ride my bike at night? Are strobe lights legal? A: At the minimum, the law requires a white headlight on the front of the bike, visible from at least 500 feet, and a red reflector on the back, visible from at least 600 feet. But this is …
Q: When people walk along roadways, they should wear bright clothes and carry lights at night. Today black seems to be the dominant color, and that is plain dumb and dangerous. Also, people should walk facing traffic, so why do I often see pedestrians walking on the wrong side of the street? A: You’re mostly …
Q: I have Chevy Bolt EV and during the recent heat wave I left the vehicle “on” while parking in order to leave the air conditioning running. The car is designed so that it can turn itself “on” in order to cool the battery, so turning it “off” doesn’t mean it’ll necessarily stay “off”. Making …
Continue reading “Can You Leave Your Engine Running on an Electric Car?”
Q: What kind of substance is applied to the local roads during freezing weather? Is the liquid mixture salt or something else? What kind of damage can it cause to cars? A: Rust. That’s the one word answer. As to what the substance is, that answer is more complicated. But rather than turn this into …
Continue reading “If It Melts Ice, It Probably Rusts Your Car”