Month: December 2020

Posted on

Distractions from Dogs

Q: Distracted driving is easy to pin on phone usage, but what about little dogs on drivers’ laps? I’ve seen so many situations that can be very dangerous due to dogs between the driver and the steering wheel or hanging out the driver’s window.

A: First the good news: At any given moment, most drivers (about 93 percent in Washington) are not distracted. Right now you’re saying, “Wait a second, there’s no way that’s true.” I know you’re saying that because that, or some variation of it, is what people usually say to me when I share that data.

Continue reading “Distractions from Dogs”
Posted on

Saving Pedestrians With Your Headlights

Q: I’m concerned about pedestrians getting killed on the road. I think the lack of use of high beam lights is likely the cause of the drivers not seeing the pedestrians. I have a problem for you to solve. How far do typical low beam lights light the road ahead and how long does it take the average driver to stop their car traveling at 50 mph? Could these lives have been spared had the drivers just used their high beam lights?

A: Having just experienced the darkest day of the year (we always call it the shortest day, but it’s still 24 hours long so that’s not really accurate is it?) it seems appropriate to talk about headlights. With over 15 hours of darkness in every day this week, there’s a good chance that some of your driving will be in the dark.

Continue reading “Saving Pedestrians With Your Headlights”
Posted on

Solutions to Speeding

Q: How do we get semis to slow down on the freeway? I was going 69 mph on the freeway and one passed me.

A: I’m going to give you the benefit of the doubt and assume that you were in a 70 mph zone when this happened because I want to believe the best of the people who send me questions. But at the same time, I’m not entirely confident that I’m right, because I’ve had a number (not too big a number, but a big enough number) of people admit to me that they’re speeding while asking what’s going to be done to stop the people speeding even faster. It brings to mind the quote by George Carlin: “Anyone that’s driving slower than you is an idiot, and anyone driving faster than you is a maniac.”

Continue reading “Solutions to Speeding”
Posted on

Getting a DUI for Talking on Your Phone?

Q: Is it true you can get a DUI for texting or talking on your phone while driving? I’ve heard that people have gotten arrested for it, and that doesn’t seem right.

A: In 2017 Washington legislators overhauled our distracted driving law which, despite being only being ten years old, was already obsolete. Actually, it was obsolete within weeks of being passed. Back in 2007, when our first distracted driving law was written, it prohibited holding the phone to your ear to talk and sending text messages. That seemed reasonable at the time because the only thing you could do with a cell phone was call and text. That all changed with the launch of the iPhone, which came out in, you guessed it, 2007.

Continue reading “Getting a DUI for Talking on Your Phone?”
Posted on

If It Melts Ice, It Probably Rusts Your 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 a chemistry lesson, let’s take a short trip back in time, to the Great Seattle Salt Debate of 2008.

Maybe you remember; the city of Seattle had decided to abandon salt as a treatment for icy and snowy roads, committing instead to using sand. And then the city was hit by the biggest snowfall in a decade. Many roads were impassable, leading to a collision that made international news when two buses full of students slid down a hill and crashed through a concrete barricade, the front quarter of one bus dangling over I-5 thirty feet below. (By magic, luck, physics or divine intervention there were no serious injuries.) In the aftermath, the city switched back to using salt, or other salt-ish chemicals. Some folks speculate that the mayor’s no-salt stance cost him the next election.

Continue reading “If It Melts Ice, It Probably Rusts Your Car”