Month: November 2023

Q: Aren’t drivers supposed to have a clear view out the rear window of their car? I saw someone driving with their entire back window covered in snow. The inability to see behind you is a serious safety issue. They drove past a police car and the officer didn’t do anything. Even if they’re not breaking the law, if I was that officer, I’d have at least pulled them over and told them they should clean the snow off.

A: Snow blocking your view is a problem, and we’ll get to that in a moment. First though, I want to address your proposed violation of a driver’s rights. Let’s pretend for a moment that driving with an entire back window covered in snow is not prohibited by law. The police can’t make a traffic stop just because they don’t like something about the driver’s vehicle.

Continue reading “Snow-Obstructed Windows (and Violating a Driver’s Rights)”

Q: I believe that everyone who renews their driver license should take a small ten-question multiple choice test. That way they would review the “Rules of the Road” book from time to time. It is not meant to deny a license, but to sit down and explain to the person the ones they got wrong and how it should be.

A: I know, that’s not a question. But it did prompt a question for me: Would giving drivers a written test when they renew their license reduce crashes? For the record, I’ve said before that I like this idea. If we’re giving people permission to pilot multi-ton projectiles through neighborhoods, they should at least be able to demonstrate that they know the rules, right?

Continue reading “Would a Refresher Test Save Lives?”

Q: There is an intersection that I often use which is a two-way stop, where the arterial cross-street does not stop. Often cars are stopped at both stop signs waiting for the arterial to clear. Normally at a stop sign, the car that arrives first goes first. However, at this intersection, one of the stopped cars is almost always turning left, and the turning car usually yields to the opposing car going straight, regardless of who stopped first. Can you confirm that a two-way stop is governed by the first-stopped, first-going rule?

A: There’s a moment in Back to the Future Part 2, when Biff’s thugs confront Marty, saying, “Look, we can do this the easy way or the hard way.” Then they knock him unconscious, in what they call the easy way. I promise, the easy way to answer this question does not involve getting clubbed in the head. But the hard way will make you a better driver.

Continue reading “Left Turns and Right-of-Way”

Q: I’m writing in response to data you shared surrounding the increase in traffic fatalities. A question comes to mind: Are there statistics compiled showing overall traffic enforcement, and any trend over the past three to five years? And does that trend in enforcement have any correlation to the increase in fatalities? Call it anecdotal, but I will suggest there is a trend. 

A: You’re asking a great question, but I don’t think you went big enough. It’s hard to spot a trend in a three-to-five-year window. So I went bigger. Let’s take a look at the last twenty years of traffic fatalities and traffic enforcement.

Continue reading “Traffic Fatalities and Enforcement Trends”