On the Use of Headlights

One would think the use of headlights would be one of those things you just couldn’t afford to forget. It’s dark outside…lights make the dark go away. Turn on your headlights…the dark goes away. If the dark hasn’t gone away, it’s because you haven’t turned on your headlights. If you don’t know how to turn on the headlights, then, perhaps you shouldn’t be driving at night.

Now, the benefits to driving with your headlights on, other than the obvious benefit of perhaps arriving to your destination safely…

1. You’ll be less likely to get pulled over by the police on your way to where ever you’re going. Driving with your headlights off is something a DUI driver does? If you’re someone who enjoys driving under the influence, then by all means, leave your headlights off and make it as easy as possible for a police officer to find you and take you to jail where you belong.

2. Compliance with the vehicle code. It really is a good feeling to follow traffic laws. They may seem like little things, insignificant even, but are they really? Is your integrity worth that stop sign you run when no one’s around? Or the red light that’s just a little too long for you to wait? It’s easy to be good when someone’s watching, but what do you do when no one else is around?

3. You make it easier for other drivers to see you. Goes back to that safety thing. Be a defensive driver. Be a safe driver.

Now, on rare occasions, it will become necessary to drive with your headlights off even during the hours of darkness. For example, some years ago, while in college in Utah, I was leaving the university late and in the middle of a snowstorm (something not many of us Californians have had to deal with). I got on the freeway in the thick of the storm, headlights on, and unable to see much of anything past the front of my car. I knew better than to put on my brights, having grown up in the northwest and driven in snow far too often, but the freeway was hidden under a thick, fluffy layer of snow and the tracks I was following were disappearing quickly. Then I remembered something my Old Man had taught me about driving in thick falling snow, turn off your headlights. I was on the freeway, with enough other vehicles off the road and in the ditch to have me in a thick sweat, but I clicked off the headlights so just my parking lights were on and suddenly I could see. It was still slow going, but without my own headlights blinding me, I was able to make my way home.

Drive Smart. Drive Safe.

The Traffic Guy

Dirty, Filthy Smokers

In January of 2008, drivers in California will join the growing number of drivers nationwide who must operate their cell phones hands-free while operating a motor vehicle. That's great, fine, and dandy, and a necessary step to making our roadways a little bit safer. But the driver's who really get me fired up, and I'm not in any way saying cell phone users aren't a hazard (they are), but these drivers, the ones who like to drive with burning cancer sticks stuck between their fingers, they are the real nasty habits on the roadway.

They light it, smoke it, killing themselves in the process and passing their second hand smoke along to anyone else close by with their window down because they can't keep their windows rolled up and inhale their own noxious, vile fumes, and then they flick the still burning stub out the window where it's free to fire-up anything it comes into contact with.

I don't understand smokers. I never will, don't want to. It's a dirty, filthy habit that makes everything it touches smell and die.

Not to mention, of course, how much time, focus, and inattention it takes to actually smoke the thing while you're driving, but driving while smoking (DWS, for short)is a habit that must be stopped, for the good of all drivers on the road.

Stop the smoker's habit. Drive Safe. Drive Smart.

The Traffic Guy

Foul Weather Driving

So I'm cruising down one of the main thoroughfares where I live, a four lane roadway (two lanes in each direction) with multiple stoplights and very curvy, thinking how much I love the first rains of the season (always reminds me of the rainy seasons we had when I lived in Ecuador), when two vehicles blow by me in the #2 lane at about 60mph. Mind you, I'm already going just over 50 in a 45 zone.

Secretly I wished the two vehicles would do every other driver a favor and smash their $30,000.00 rockets into each other and then into the sound wall at the side of the road. I know, that's a terrible thing to say, but come on. The roads are still draining the excess water from the rain that's been falling all morning, it's still raining, and it's the first real rain of the season. All of that spells slick, nasty roads.

I think everyone who wants a driver's license should be forced to drive in really foul weather, I'm talking the really nasty stuff, snow falling so thick at night you have to turn your headlights off to see while driving on a packed, icy snow covered freeway (Been there and done that, no joke. Freakiest drive of my life), so they understand the posted speedlimit is the speed suggested in ideal driving conditions.

Think people. Drive safe. Truth is, the basic speed laws allow for officers to cite drivers driving at an "unsafe speed for road conditions". When you get a ticket for "speeding", it's not because you were driving too fast, it's because you were driving unsafe. Think about that the next time an officer pulls you over and tells you the reason for your detention is because of your speed.

Drive Smart. Drive Safe.

The Traffic Guy

Looky-Loos

I don't often travel the freeway during rush-hour. My job allows me to travel against the normal flow of traffic at the other end of the work week, but every now and then, a meeting, or training, draws me out onto the highway most of the working force is accustomed to. I seriously don't know how the 9 to 5'er does it.

The thing that really gets me is the "Looky-Loo". Traffic is moving along great, thick, but moving at a speed I can be alright with, maybe even fast enough to get me into town a little early so I can get me a warm drink on this particularly cool morning. And then, without warning, the traffic comes to a virtual standstill.

No smoke. No fire. No flashing lights from patrol cars or fire engines or ambulances, not even a tow truck. Nothing.

What we have is two cars completely off to the side of the road having just been involved in a fender bender. Nothing serious, no blood, no body parts strewn along the roadway, nothing to necessitate the stop and look traffic that has now clogged the freeway and turned all of the normally sane and good-natured people into cursing savages.

I mean, is there really a need to come to a complete stop to look at another's misfortune? I don't understand it. I've been told, there's a little bit of a voyeur in everyone. Maybe that's it, a little bit of voyeurism being exercised on the freeway.

Stop. You're angering lots of people, good people. Save it for the privacy of your own home where the rest of us don't have to be affected by it.

The Traffic Guy

Why do people Hit and Run?

It's sad that our society has come to rely so heavily on the automobile for transportation, but we have and that's just the way of it. We have cars, we need cars, so when some one does something resulting in the loss of your car, it's a serious violation of your pursuit of happiness. Car thieves and drivers who Hit and Run are the worst.

Why do people Hit and Run? I don't understand. I don't think I ever will. Collisions happen, You drive long enough, eventually you're going to be involved in a collision. But why a person would crash into someone and then drive away without checking to see if the other person was okay, without stopping to say "Hey, I've got insurance. I'm sorry this happened. How can I help?" That kind of callous, lack of integrity just really chaps my hide.

To Hit and Run somebody has got to be one of the most despicable things you can do to another human being. You hurt them physically, emotionally, leaving them with all kinds of unanswered questions. Then they have to deal with their insurance, which may or may not go well. Being involved in an auto collision is a very traumatic thing, but then to be left alone, disabled in the road, watching the person that did it to you drive away, is so disheartening.

Don't be this driver. Be the one who, even though you're not at fault, helps in whatever way you can. A ride home, a call to a loved one, a bottle of cold water, a bandaid, something, anything to show that person, "Hey, everything is going to be alright." Because, ultimately, everything will be alright.

If you want it to be.

Be safe out there, Stay safe. Drive smart.

The Traffic Guy

22108 CVC

Making a turn without properly signaling.

I've never been in a vehicle that does not have some way to signal a turning movement. Never. And it's such an easy, brainless thing to do. Push the lever up, pull the lever down. Push it up. Pull it down. It's really that simple. And in most vehicles on the road today, the lever will reset itself for the next turn you have to make. Yet, it seems a lot of drivers have difficulty finding that lever attached to the steering column (on most vehicles) and using it properly.

100 feet before the turn, you click the turn signal on and make your turn. Doesn't require an inordinate amount of thinking, and the benefits of doing so are huge. Other drivers will actually feel comfortable knowing what you are about to do and can react properly, perhaps avoiding a major collision and injury.

By signalling and then completing that specificed turning movement, you protect yourself from liability (as long as you're making a legal turn. Signalling doesn't make an illegal turn, legal. Doesn't work that way. Never has. Never will.) and, more importantly perhaps, you protect yourself from unnecessary risk. Driving is already risky enough, why make it any more risky?

Use your turn signals. Make driving easy and stay safe out there.

The Traffic Guy

You're Not Gonna Pass Me!

So I’m driving along, minding my own business, traveling my usual speed of about eight miles per hour over the speedlimit when I realize the driver in front of me is traveling at a speed a bit slower than I am. As I approach the individual, I realize they’re not going to move over and let me pass safely by, so I change lanes and have to make my passing movement to the right. Then, just as I pull alongside them, they speed up and prevent me from passing safely.

Why? Why do some drivers do this? It’s unsafe, it creates road rage, and it’s down right rude. Come on, drivers. If you don’t want to be passed on the right, stop driving slow in the fast lane. If you don’t want to be passed at all, drive faster.

Oh, and then there are the drivers that force you to pass on the right and then speed up as you’re passing them forcing you to brake and slow down because they’ve boxed you in behind another vehicle. Once you’re boxed in with nowhere to go, they slow back down and keep you there as long as they can.

Why? Why would any driver act like this? We’re not riding around on scooters, or driving Big Wheels. These are huge chunks of metal and plastic and fiberglass, hurtling down the freeway at speeds of 60, 70, and 80 miles per hour. You would think driving reckless would be the last thing any one would want to do. You would think injuring or maybe even killing someone would be the last thing you’d want to have to live with the rest of your life, but then again, perhaps the reckless driver is also the kind of driver who would hit and run.

Which kind of driver are you? Be safe. Drive safe.

Just another pet peeve from The Traffic Guy.

Fast Lane. Slow Lane.

You’d think it would be a pretty easy concept to grasp, but there apparently is a serious misunderstanding taking place on freeways everywhere when it comes to how fast to drive in what lane of traffic. And perhaps it’s more than just a misunderstanding but rather a gross lack of character and consideration for other drivers on the road. So let me take a moment and explain just how the lanes of traffic work.

Two Lane Roadway

A roadway with one lane of traffic going in each direction should be pretty self-explanatory. You drive at the posted speed-limit or a speed safe for road and traffic conditions, following whatever road markings and traffic control devices are in place.

Four Lane Highway

Now we have a roadway with two lanes of traffic going in either direction. The #1 lane is the lane closest to center of the roadway and is often referred to as the “fast lane”. Traffic in this lane should be traveling at least the posted speed-limit, traffic and road conditions permitting. The “slow lane” or #2 lane is the lane closest to the shoulder and should be used by those vehicles and drivers who are traveling below the posted speed-limit, whether by desire or design. Slow drivers stay out of the fast lane and fast drivers shouldn’t be forced to pass vehicles in the slow lane. Passing to the right of vehicles is dangerous and to be avoided whenever possible.

When a roadway has a designated center lane, this lane is strictly for those vehicles attempting to make a left turn and is not to be used to pass vehicles is the “fast lane”. Passing left of center in an area not designed for that kind of driving maneuver can also be very dangerous.

Multi-Lane Highways and Freeways

With more than two lanes of traffic going in either direction, the rules don’t change. The lane closest to the center is still the #1 lane (fast lane) and the lane closest to the shoulder is still the “slow lane” (the lane number changes to reflect the number of lanes on the roadway, i.e. if there are four lanes of traffic the slow lane will be the #4 lane).

On some of these larger roadways and freeways you will find Carpool Lanes, lanes of traffic designated specifically for the use by drivers of vehicles with two or more passengers (depending on the posted requirement). They are not passing lanes, slow lanes, or lanes for stopping to repair a flat tire. The middle lanes of traffic, however many there might be, are for those drivers content to drive the speed limit but neither find it necessary to be in the slow lane and/or traffic in the fast lane is moving faster than they wish to travel.

When traveling on a freeway, you will sometimes find there are lane restrictions for large trucks, motorhomes, and or vehicles pulling trailers. These are slow moving vehicles and for that reason on these roadways they have be confined to the slow lane.

A Good General Rule

When logic fails you, here’s a good rule to follow: Be aware of traffic around you and the speed at which these vehicles are traveling. Traveling at or near the general flow of traffic is a safe way to travel on just about any roadway and a good way of avoiding the attention of the ever-vigilant protectors of the highway. Studies also suggest that drivers who travel at a speed significantly slower than the flow of traffic actually cause and are involved in more collisions than other drivers.

As in all your traveling excursions, be safe out there.

The Traffic Guy

Why we have On-Ramps.

It seems to me there are a lot of people, drivers that is, out there who have some difficulty understanding just how to navigate a freeway on-ramp. It’s really quite simple, self-explanatory even, and rather ingenious, but somehow the purpose of this common traffic control device eludes a surprising number of licensed and unlicensed drivers, although, at times, it’s difficult to tell the difference between the two.

The really quite simple part is this: A freeway on-ramp is a one-way roadway designed specifically for drivers in need of merging safely onto a freeway. Unlike an off-ramp where certain speeds might be unsafe when maneuvering the ramp, the on-ramp provides you with the necessary space to accelerate to a speed that facilitates a safe merge with traffic already in freeway lanes of traffic.

That brings us to the self-explanatory part. The end of the on-ramp will ultimately end at the freeway where traffic is moving at a speed of 55 to 65 miles per hour (depending on where you live) and often at speeds much greater than that. It seems to me that in order to safely merge with traffic, a driver should necessarily come to the conclusion that, in order to merge safely with traffic, he or she must accelerate to the speed of traffic already on the freeway. In order to do this, the driver must be aware of traffic on the freeway so as to know at what speed he or she can enter the freeway lanes of traffic without causing a disruption in the flow of that traffic. Not a concept that should be terrible difficult to understand.

And that’s the ingenious part. The idea of how to safely navigate a freeway on-ramp should be inherent in all who drive vehicles. There is no great mystery in which direction you are meant to drive, where the road you travel will end, or at what speed you are to be traveling when you get there.

Yet, at some point between entering the on-ramp and exiting the on-ramp, there are some drivers who seem to lose consciousness and foul the whole thing up. These drivers are perfect examples of why driving can be a stressful, dangerous venture, and perhaps a trip to DMV for a Driver Re-Examination Test might help open their eyes to what should already be self-evident to them as drivers. But then again, perhaps it won’t, and that’s precisely why traffic schools nationwide teach new drivers to be Defensive Drivers.

And that’s your first Pet Peeve from The Traffic Guy.

Be safe out there.