Everything Traffic Safety
For many people the end of the year is a time to take stock of our lives and see if we’re achieving our goals. This week, instead of answering one of your questions, I’d like to propose one of my own: How are we doing in our goal to eliminate fatal and serious injury crashes on our roads? Continue reading “The Good News, The Bad News and The Worse News in Traffic Safety”
Every year during the holidays we launch our impaired driving emphasis patrols and remind everyone of the dangers of impaired driving. Rather than hearing it from me, I thought it would be better to let someone who has experienced a DUI arrest tell her story:
I want to publicly thank Rochelle for her willingness to tell her story. It takes courage, and courageous people change lives. Thanks also to Ziad at MyTrafficMan.net for collaborating on this project.
Q: Could you address the rules and regulations on angle parking? In Fairhaven big trucks seem to hang out into the narrow street when they’re parked in the diagonal parking along the street.
A: The rule you’re looking for is in Washington Administrative Code 308-330-433. You’re not allowed to park a car in such a way as to leave less than ten feet of roadway available for traffic. Continue reading “Angle Parking and Bike Helmets”
Q: Recently I was driving and came across a funeral procession. There was no police escort, but my father taught me to pull over to the side of the road when I was young. Is there a law requiring this? Several people on the road in front of me did not pull off.
A: What your father taught you may have been motivated more by respect for those in mourning than by the letter of the law. Or it may have been based on the law of another state. Laws about funeral processions vary from state to state. In Washington the law doesn’t require drivers to pull over to the side of the road for funeral processions, but there are a few rules on the topic. Continue reading “How To Drive In (Or Not In) A Funeral Procession”
Q: What is the standard for judging whether to continue to proceed through an intersection with a yellow light? If a police officer was going to issue a citation, what would they look for? There seems to be a whole continuum and sometimes it is hard to judge whether to make a fast stop or proceed.
A: The classic yellow light dilemma: Do I floor it or slam on the brakes? I’ve heard people say, “Red means stop, green means go, yellow means go faster.” That’s obviously not helpful advice, but in observing drivers at intersections, some people have readily accepted that flawed guidance. In this column I hope to bring a more balanced perspective to the yellow light discussion. Continue reading “How To Get Through a Yellow Light (Without Getting a Ticket)”
Q: You state that “Target Zero is Washington’s plan to eliminate fatality and serious injury crashes by 2030,” which is laudable. When it speaks of “fatality and serious injury crashes” does that statement include those crashes where bikes are involved? I ask this because here in Bellingham there appears to be absolutely no laws affecting cyclist and their driving behavior.
A: The author of this question continues with a series of situations and statements involving cyclists. I’m going to work my way through the letter affirming laws, dispelling myths and trying to put cycling in perspective with the overall problem of fatalities on our roads. I can’t respond to all of them, but here are the highlights. Continue reading “Bicycle Rules and Myths”
A few days ago I received a question, or actually a report of complaints, by way of the folks at Whatcom Transportation Authority. It seems that people have been calling them to report bus drivers running red lights at a couple of locations in Bellingham. Maybe you’ve also seen bus drivers sneaking ahead of the traffic on Lakeway Drive at Lincoln Street or on Alabama Street at James Street.
What you’re seeing isn’t actually a violation of the law; at those two intersections WTA has worked with the City of Bellingham to set up queue jump lanes. Perhaps you’re not familiar with queue jump lanes. If that’s the case you’re not alone. Besides the angry calls to WTA, I heard a rumor (I won’t give up my source, but I’m pretty sure it’s true) that a police officer, unaware of the queue jump lanes, stopped a WTA bus driver intending to give the driver a ticket for running a red light. If queue jump lanes create so many complaints, why do we have them? The simple answer: they solve a problem. Continue reading “Jumping The Queue – It’s What Buses Can Do”
I heard some commotion outside my house today. I stepped around the corner and saw this:
Q: Not that I plan on doing it, but what would happen if I tried to outrun the cops on a traffic stop?
A: Let’s work from the assumption that you’re being pulled over for a simple traffic violation and that you’re not a suspect in a heinous crime. Understandably, cops make a greater effort to catch suspects that by their very freedom present a risk to the community than they do for someone who doesn’t use a turn signal. Continue reading “Running From The Cops”
I’ve been hearing from folks who, as the school year starts up again, have not so much a question as a common request: “Can you please remind people to drive safe, especially around schools?” Of course I can. As requested: “Hey drivers, be safe on the road, and watch out for the kids.” I’d also like to go a couple steps further by expanding our concept of “kids” and why this time of year is extra-risky for drivers. Continue reading “Back-to-School Driving Reminders”