Dangers Behind the Wheel

I was reading the paper this morning when I came across an article that caught my eye. Apparently in Washington State, a 71-year-old woman got onto the highway and realized she was going in the wrong direction. Instead of doing the safer thing and taking the next exit and getting back on in the opposite direction, she went ahead and made a u-turn and started heading back. Against traffic. After a few minutes of heading into oncoming traffic she again realized her mistake and then proceeded to make another u-turn on the highway before finally getting off the highway and disappearing. Luckily the only accident was a car that swerved to avoid the runaway granny but thankfully no fatalities. Police were able to track the woman down after a vigilant driver reported the license plate number to the police. Although she won't be arrested, she is going to be going back to driver's school to take a refresher. Now had this been someone about thirty years younger, we'd be seeing pictures of them in jail or being beaten to the ground after police make the arrest but because it's an old woman we are showing compassion and sympathy. I feel that's a double standard.

I am all for testing drivers again at periodic intervals. In most states to renew your license you have to have your eyes examined and that's pretty much it. I feel that this doesn't ensure that a person who passed their driver's test years ago is still competent or even aware of the rules. I remember taking driver's education in high school because it was a requirement since I was under 18 when I went to get my first license. I had been driving under my parent's training since I was about 14 so I was quite aware of the rules of the road and a lot of the regulations. Still, when it came time to take the test, I reviewed everything they provided and then took the test on the state's closed road course. It was more nerve wracking to have a stern looking state trooper sitting with you than it was to actually take the test but that's also part of it I guess. Still, looking back on it, it was now 12 years ago that I did that. It was the basic stuff, parallel parking a car, performing a three point turn, making a u-turn. All these things are basic but important.

I would take it a step further in later training by having re-tests every ten years or so. A driver would be taken out on the roads and they would be observed by the trooper. It may take longer and cost a bit more but at least you can be evaluated by a trooper then on the spot and know how you're doing. There are so many driver's I have encountered out there who are completely ignorant of the rules out there that it is simply awe inspiring. There are a number of people out there who believe that simply by giving their indicator (or turn signal) that that means they are free and clear to change lanes. So many SUV drivers these days just go ahead and start making lane shifts that the rest of us have to be on the lookout to make the adjustment to accomodate drivers.

How about the number of times you see beauty parlors on wheels driving beside you. By this I mean the women who are busily putting on make-up, putting on mascara, applying lipstick, eye-shadow, rouge, the whole thing. I bet if car companies made a full size vanity mirror in the sunscreen then they would sell more of those car models. Some people are bad enough at driving that they aren't helping the situation by diverting more attention to applying eyeliner. Not that guys are any better. I have seen lots of men out there who seem to think it normal to read the paper while driving on the highway. I'm not talking about in traffic but rather out on the highway. What is so important that these guys can't wait to read it? After all, so many of them show up to work and then take the paper into the toilet for half-an-hour after arriving anyways. What's the rush to read it in the car then? To get in the mood?

By testing people again, perhaps they'll remember that these things aren't normal and shouldn't be allowed. Now one which applies to most drivers out there is cell phones. I grant you that it is undoubtedly one of the greatest modern conveniences out there since sliced bread and frozen pizza but it appears to be turning so many people into mindless drivers out there that's ridiculous. If you ever come across a car that is incessently showing its brake lights every few seconds, when you pass it you will likely see someone engrossed in conversation on the phone. This also applies to when you see a car weaving in its own lane and straying into others. The person is likely to be on the phone again (or at least turning to the back seat to scold the children.

Many states and the District of Columbia have taken steps to make it illegal to drive and talk on a phone without a hands-free device but people still try to get away with it. And while it's illegal in most states, what amazes me even more is that knowing fully well that talking on the phone is illegal while driving, why would anyone think it's okay to type a text message? I mean there may be those rare geniuses out there who can type up messages without looking at the keys like Leonardo DiCaprio in "The Departed" but on the whole, most of us aren't so techno-savvy. That being said, why would anyone think that it's perfectly okay to do so? Like I said, ridiculous. I enjoy driving a lot. I don't enjoy sitting in traffic but I do enjoy being behind the wheel on a road trip, perhaps it's a bit of nomadic trait in me but with all of these things to be on the lookout for on the roads, it can be tense at times. Maybe it's a conspiracy by the anti-oil-company companies as a means of getting us to go green faster. It may work.