Category: Road Rules

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You’re Probably Guilty Of Littering

Q: Is it legal to throw an apple core out my car window while I’m driving? I’ve always assumed (and was told growing up) that it’s legal because an apple core is a biodegradable food scrap.

A: Can I turn a question about littering into a traffic safety issue? Yes, I can. We all know that littering is wrong, and most of us never do it. At least you probably think you don’t litter. You can probably guess where this is going. Before I accuse anyone of anything, I need to make a confession. On multiple occasions I’ve rolled down my window and thrown an apple core into the ditch on the side of the road. There. I said it. I feel better already.

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Do You Really Always Need Insurance?

Q: Can a person receive a ticket for driving without insurance on private property?

A: The short answer: Yes. If you had asked, “Can a person receive a ticket on private property?” the answer would have been much longer. And now for the longer answer: Most traffic violations apply when a driver is on a public roadway, but some traffic laws apply statewide. I’ll explain how to identify which rules belong just to the road and which ones are anywhere in the state.

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Learning How To Walk

Q: Washington law states that when sidewalks are not provided, pedestrians shall walk only on the left side of the roadway or its shoulder facing traffic and upon meeting an oncoming vehicle shall move clear of the roadway. Why is this law seldom enforced or ever publicized?

A: Walking along the road with your back toward traffic is, as you clearly quoted from the law, illegal. And it’s a bad idea. If you’re sharing the road with 4000 pound projectiles, I’d think you’d want to see them coming. But is it the worst idea? It seems like we have a good opportunity here to investigate the greatest safety risks to pedestrians. Let’s work through the list of common factors in pedestrian fatal crashes. (Data is from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration unless noted otherwise.)

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Blocking the Crosswalk

Q: At an intersection, after I’ve stopped at the stop line, is it okay to pull forward for visibility if I end up blocking the crosswalk? If this is legal, do pedestrians have to wait until I leave the crosswalk to cross? When I did this someone walked out in front of me well outside the crosswalk.

A: This week we might get a little law-heavy trying to answer this question. That’s because there isn’t one specific law that gives us the complete answer. Instead I’m relying on four separate traffic laws (along with a reference from the Washington Driver Guide) to get the full picture. Some, or maybe all, of these laws are familiar on their own, but mixing together this legal cocktail is what makes it work.

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What’s The Big Honking Deal?

Q: When is it legal to use your horn? Or maybe I should ask, when is it not legal to use your horn? Some drivers use their horn for a lot of things that aren’t emergencies.

A: There’s a debate about whether the Road Runner from Looney Tunes says “beep beep” or “meep meep.” In the few minutes of research I did on the topic, I concluded that in the script the Road Runner was supposed to read it was “beep beep”, but he actually said, “meep meep.” Either way, what he was doing was technically a violation of the law. At least in Washington.

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Practice How To Not Skid

Q: When your car starts to skid, do you turn in the direction of the back of the car while maintaining constant pressure on the accelerator? Or let off the accelerator?

A: Reading a column on how to get out of a skid is probably about as useful as watching a documentary on how to swim; after you watch it you might be able to articulate the mechanics, but if your boat starts to sink you’ll wish you spent some practice time in the pool. That’s not to say you shouldn’t read about how to get out of a skid. It’s just that believing you know how because you can describe it is a lot different than having the muscle memory to execute it in an unexpected and high-stress situation.

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The Safest Time To Drive

Q: As seniors we avoid rush hour driving whether it’s early morning or after four in the afternoon. We rarely drive at night. We believe we are safer on the road mid-day nine to three. Is our assessment and decision based on reality as far as safety and crashes?

A: When it comes to driving, getting older generally works against you. However, this question demonstrates one area where that’s not true: Wisdom. When I was sixteen I don’t ever remember wondering about the safest time to drive. As we get older (and hopefully smarter) we start asking questions like this one. So let’s begin the quest to find the safest time to drive.

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DUI – It’s Not Just Booze Anymore

What kind of behavior do you visualize when you hear the terms ‘impaired driving’ or DUI? If your mind translated the word ‘impaired’ to the word ‘drunk’ or DUI turned into ‘driving under the influence of alcohol’ that would be understandable, but no longer entirely accurate. Impaired driving is changing, or more accurately, has already changed in Washington.

Impaired driving is the leading contributing factor in Washington fatal crashes, and has been for many years, but the dominant form of impairment is no longer just alcohol. Of the 565 traffic fatalities in Washington in 2017,266 involved an impaired driver. Of those 266 drivers, 181 of them had been drinking alcohol and 200 of them were impaired by drugs. That adds up to a lot more than 266, and that overlap is where we encounter poly-drug impairment;using two or more impairing substances at the same time. You can probably guess the most frequently combined substances: alcohol and cannabis. By 2016 poly-drug drivers involved in fatal crashes were more than twice the number of alcohol-only drivers and more than five times the number of cannabis-only drivers.

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Opening Your Car Door? There’s A Law For That

Q: I was driving down Holly Street when someone in a parked car opened their car door into the lane I was driving in. Fortunately there was no one in the lane next to me and I swerved to avoid hitting the door. If I had hit the door who would have been at fault?

A: Would you believe there is a law written specifically for this exact scenario? Not only that, it’s also short and easy to understand. I don’t think I’ve ever said that about traffic law in this column. Here’s what the Revised Code of Washington says about opening car doors: “No person shall open the door of a motor vehicle on the side adjacent to moving traffic unless and until it is reasonably safe to do so, and can be done without interfering with the movement of other traffic, nor shall any person leave a door open on the side of a vehicle adjacent to moving traffic for a period of time longer than necessary to load or unload passengers.” Continue reading “Opening Your Car Door? There’s A Law For That”

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Disturbed By Trucks

Q: I drove back last evening from Seattle to Bellingham and I was disturbed by the oversized, raised pickups that were speeding in the left lane, some with trailers behind them. I’ve also seen tandem dump trucks tailgating on I-5. What is the policy on speed enforcement of such vehicles as the oversized pickups and those with trailers? Are there statistics on such vehicles and collision rates?

A: On the surface this looks like a question about speeding trucks, but there are a lot of sub-topics crammed into those few sentences; modified vehicles, trailers, commercial trucks, tailgating, enforcement policies, and collision data. I’ll see if I can tackle all of that in the next few paragraphs. Since the questions were prompted by a trip on I-5, I thought it would be helpful to talk with a Washington State Trooper about their enforcement practices. Much of what you read here is informed by that conversation. Continue reading “Disturbed By Trucks”