Road Courtesy Saves Lives! September 26, 2014 at 8:00 am by Sue Rewald Is this another urban myth? … Or is there some substance behind that headline? This is a principle that a recently retired senior police officer from Bundaberg took very seriously for all of his service as a result of the many serious crashes he had to attend. It was part of his signature block on all of his internal and external correspondence so it is obvious that it meant a great deal to him. Q. So how does courtesy relate to everyone’s routine travel? A. Although maybe not a priority, just some minor consideration of the way we travel and how we treat other road users would positively affect the number of crashes that occur and the way that road users relate to one another. Q. How can I be a courteous driver? A. Some examples of good etiquette include allow other drivers plenty of room to merge lanes approach and enter roundabouts and intersections at a sensible speed give pedestrians a generous time to negotiate road crossings allow larger vehicles room to manoeuvre in situations where space is limited, eg. trucks entering or leaving premises leave adequate space when passing bicycle riders. Remember new laws provide for up to one and a half metres between your car and a bicycle. Some examples of what NOT TO DO include be an aggressive driver drive too close behind other vehicles shout abuse to other persons deliberately brake or slow suddenly to irritate others race other drivers to get ahead where lanes merge. Q. What happens to persons who display aggressive driving, or who are not courteous? A. In the first instance, these behaviours contribute to crashes and provide conflict and frustration to road users. There are a range of offences and punishments, from basic breaches of road rules that attract modest fines and loss of demerit points, up to criminal offences such as dangerous operation of a vehicle. Fines in the range of several thousand dollars, several years’ loss of license and terms of imprisonment are becoming more common in Queensland courts. Q. What are the statistics for local crashes? A. In Bundaberg Police Division alone, there were 43 crashes in August 2014, two of which involved fatalities and 13 injury crashes. Factors including follow too close, and fail to give way are well represented in these crashes. Q. Do police actually prosecute these bad drivers? A. With the advent of affordable digital video cameras mounted in private and commercial vehicles, many incidents are being reported to and investigated by police. You only need to watch the reality shows on TV to see the detail that these cameras record, and how valuable they can be. For more information on aggressive driving check out the fact sheet on the CARRS-Q website. Article provided by Bundaberg Road Policing Unit
Posted on: Sat, 27 Sep 2014 06:07:14 +0000
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