Category: Road Rules

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Cyclists and “The Wave”

Q: I ride a bicycle and drive a car. While riding my bike in town, I confront the following situation on a regular basis: I am riding on a side street, come to an intersection, and stop at the stop sign. A well-intentioned driver on the main road will come to a stop, even though he is not facing a stop sign, and motion me to cross, even though I should wait until traffic has passed. Usually I cross, providing traffic from other directions has also stopped. I would like all motorists and bicyclists to follow the law; i.e. if the car has the right-of-way, then it should go. What is the appropriate way for me to handle this situation?

A: Like you, I both ride a bike and drive a car. Not at the same time, obviously. And like you, I’ve been in a similar situation – getting the “go ahead” wave from a driver who has stopped for me, even though I’m the one with the stop sign. I know people even experience it occasionally when driving a car. Continue reading “Cyclists and “The Wave””

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The Most Dangerous Way To Cross The Street

Q: In regards to a statement in a previous article about pedestrians crossing the street at unsafe locations, what is safe versus non-safe? I think a pedestrian crossing at any intersection is safe but some people think only marked crosswalks are safe.

A: The problem with the word ‘safe’ when talking about traffic is that it can misrepresent the risks, and lead us to believe that because we’ve chosen a ‘safe’ behavior a threat doesn’t exist. When people ask me about my job, my answer generally includes ‘traffic safety’. Maybe instead I should say that I work to make getting where you’re going less dangerous. Continue reading “The Most Dangerous Way To Cross The Street”

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Is it Illegal to Speed in a Car Commercial?

Q: Is it legal for a car manufacturer to show a car doing an illegal driving maneuver in a commercial?

A: It depends on which illegal driving maneuver you’re talking about. There is a law that prohibits the advertisement of speeding on public roads, but we’ll get to that in a moment. First I’d like to touch on a broader topic that your question brings up. It seems like there’s an arms race going on between car manufacturers, but instead of firepower, they’re competing on horsepower (which generally translates into speed). Continue reading “Is it Illegal to Speed in a Car Commercial?”

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Does a Crash Always Get You a Ticket?

Q: Why is it that you get a ticket from law enforcement if you get into an accident? To pay for them to come out? What if only one party called, shouldn’t that party get the ticket for requesting their service?

A: At a fundamental level, law enforcement officers write tickets at crashes because they see evidence of a traffic violation. The ticket isn’t a form of reimbursement to the agency for the time it takes to respond to the crash. Actually, a law enforcement agency receives only a tiny fraction of a traffic ticket. The rest gets assigned to other various state and local accounts. Continue reading “Does a Crash Always Get You a Ticket?”

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The Cost of Dangerous Driving in Whatcom County

Q: It seems like there have been a lot more serious crashes than normal lately. Is my perception accurate or have crashes just been making the news more often?

A: Unfortunately, your perception is disturbingly accurate. Over the past ten years, we’ve averaged about 15 lives lost due to traffic crashes. In 2015 and 2016, 11 and 12 people died in crashes, respectively.  So far in 2017, 20 people have been killed in traffic crashes in Whatcom County. That’s approaching our worst record in over a decade, 21 deaths, which occurred in 2008. And there are still two more months left in the year. These aren’t just numbers. Each data point is a tragedy for the family and friends of the person who died. Continue reading “The Cost of Dangerous Driving in Whatcom County”

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Trains and Tanker Trucks Don’t Mix

Q: At the rail crossings at Slater Road and at Grandview Road, what is the requirement for trucks carrying hazardous materials? It makes sense that they stop at uncontrolled crossings, but why do they have to stop when there are crossing signals? Is it a company regulation? At the Grandview crossing they stop empty going west and stop full going east. Why don’t they pull to the side of the road? Is that a requirement? I’ve seen as many as eight cars behind these trucks at crossings.

A: Before I answer this question, let’s take a moment and recall the 2010 film, Unstoppable. (Not to be confused with the 2004 film named Unstoppable or the 2013 film named Unstoppable. Someone in Hollywood needs to be more inventive with titles.) In case you haven’t seen it, here’s a synopsis: An unmanned freight train barrels toward a city while our heroes race against the clock to prevent a catastrophe. In the process, anything on the train track gets annihilated. Continue reading “Trains and Tanker Trucks Don’t Mix”

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Flashing Hands And Countdown Timers

Q: I have a question on traffic signals for pedestrians. My understanding is that when a pedestrian comes up to the corner to cross the street and the red hand light is flashing, they are not supposed to start across. I see pedestrians constantly starting to cross when the red hand is lit and the seconds are showing. They seem to think that they are okay to start across as long the seconds are showing. Who is right on this?

A: By a show of hands, how many of you, when you see a pedestrian traffic signal with a countdown timer, look at the remaining seconds, calculate whether you can cross the street that fast, and then make a run for it? You can all put your hands down now. Continue reading “Flashing Hands And Countdown Timers”

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Is it Right to Pass on the Right?

Q: Is it legal to pass on the right on two lane streets where there is no fog line and the person in front of you is turning left?

A: I feel like you’ve nearly answered the question for me. In your question you actually listed one of only two situations where it is legal to pass on the right. To quote from the Revised Code of Washington, a driver may pass on the right “when the vehicle over taken is making or about to make a left turn.” We’ll get to the second situation a little later. Continue reading “Is it Right to Pass on the Right?”

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Too Blinky, Too Bright

Q: What kind of lighting is required to ride my bike at night? Are strobe lights legal?

A: At the minimum, the law requires a white headlight on the front of the bike, visible from at least 500 feet, and a red reflector on the back, visible from at least 600 feet. But this is America, and if a little is good, then more is better, right? Not always. There seems to be an arms race for the brightest headlights on both cars and bicycles, and the bikes might be winning. Continue reading “Too Blinky, Too Bright”

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Travel With Care – A Local Traffic Safety Project

This week’s column is less of a question and more of a plea: Can’t we all just get along on our roads? I’ve received questions from drivers who are angry about cyclist and pedestrian behavior, pedestrians who are terrified of drivers and nervous about cyclists, and cyclists who fear for their lives because of drivers.

Many of you have sent questions asking about why a driver or cyclist or pedestrian would do ____. (Fill in the blank with the dumb action of your choice.) I’ll continue to work through the questions, but for today I’d like to address a common question that often follows the first question: What are we going to do about it? Continue reading “Travel With Care – A Local Traffic Safety Project”