13363
Behind The Wheel

The better than average driver

May 19, 2012 / 5:00 am

Have you ever met anyone who would admit to being less than a better than average driver? The next time you are having a casual conversation in a group ask this question. Changes are good that the majority of the people there will rate themselves as better than average, something that cannot be...

Using stop signs to control speed

May 12, 2012 / 5:00 am

Photo: Contributed Speeds considered excessive by residents are considered reasonable by these same persons when they are driving in another neighborhood. This observation is taken from a publication titled Speed Control in Residential Areas by the Institute of...

Cycling on the wrong side

May 5, 2012 / 5:00 am

(Photo: Flickr user, miguel77) "I'm seeing so many cyclists on the wrong side of the road lately that I am starting to wonder if the law has changed," says a reader from Courtenay. "It might save a life or two if they got back on the right side of the...

Making driving records public

Apr 28, 2012 / 5:00 am

Yesterday's edition of the Victoria Times Colonist newspaper contained an article about Justice Minister Shirley Bond considering making the driving record of B.C. drivers public knowledge. The idea is that if conventional methods of convincing drivers to follow the driving rules are not...

Five dollar head, five dollar helmet

Apr 21, 2012 / 5:00 am

The observation "five dollar head, five dollar helmet" used to be common in traffic law enforcement referring to motorcycle riders who wore beanie style helmets that would provide little or no protection in a crash. Today, that observation could be extended to those who choose to ride...

Beware the flower clown

Apr 14, 2012 / 5:00 am

Photo: Contributed I would imagine that your opinion of police traffic surveillance tactics probably depends a lot on whether you are the recipient of a ticket or not because of them. You may have actually seen Corporal Smith in Nanaimo dressed up as the Easter Bunny or...

Driving & hand held devices

Apr 7, 2012 / 5:00 am

Any chance you might do another article on handheld device usage in BC? The first rider death of 2012 in Kelowna was caused by driver inattention to cell phone usage. I've attached a photo that was just taken this Saturday. We actually took several. I was driving, my wife was operating...
11840

Bring back the IRP for over .08!

Mar 31, 2012 / 5:00 am

I spent more than 25 years policing in British Columbia, dealt with many impaired drivers and cleaned up their aftermath. When the B.C. Government announced the Immediate Roadside Prohibition (IRP) program I was excited. Here was a chance to quickly deal a significant blow to those drivers who...

Canada's Road Safety Strategy 2015

Mar 24, 2012 / 5:00 am

We reach the mid-point of Canada's Road Safety Vision 2015 in only a few more months. I'm not going to ask if you are doing something to meet the goals of the program, I'm going to ask you if you have ever heard of the program. One would think that given the cost of motor vehicle...

Radar and laser jammers

Mar 17, 2012 / 5:00 am

Photo: Contributed - (Photo: Flickr user, nowin) Radar and laser detectors are currently legal to install in your vehicle and use to avoid prosecution for failing to follow the speed limits in British Columbia. One has to ask why BC is one of the few provinces in our...

Got your quota yet

Mar 10, 2012 / 5:00 am

It was a jab that I heard often at the roadside and some days I really wanted to respond to it. "Yes, thank you. Yours means I get a new toaster!" Somehow I don't think the driver would have seen any humour in it. Seriously though, I have only been subject to a quota twice in...

Buying a fake BC driver's licence

Mar 3, 2012 / 5:00 am

For less than the price of a traffic ticket, you can find businesses on line that will sell you a "novelty" B.C. driver's licence that looks a lot like the real thing. Would it make a perfect gift for your favorite prohibited driver or perhaps avoid becoming prohibited if you have...

'One eyed' vehicles

Feb 25, 2012 / 5:00 am

If you have normal vision, would you consider driving with one eye closed at night? To most people that would seem to be a very foolish question. Why would anyone want to diminish their capability to see while driving! Take a look at other vehicles on the highway right now. How many of them have...

Seeing into our future

Feb 18, 2012 / 5:00 am

Evolution has shaped us to process visual information perceived at a walking speed of 5 or 6 km/h. This means that looking ahead for 3 to 6 seconds of travel time is plenty to keep from running into objects in our path. However, this natural tendency is insufficient for reliable driving...

New drivers: what do we expect?

Feb 11, 2012 / 5:00 am

News item: Teen learner driver causes a head on crash that kills two other youths. Both GLP drivers involved were driving contrary to the conditions of their drivers licences and should not have been on the road. It's a tragedy, but should we be surprised? Look around you the next time...

Pets and air bags

Feb 4, 2012 / 5:00 am

Our lap dog loves to go for car rides! She's generous too because you are more than welcome to sit underneath her in the right front seat. The trouble is, this is definitely not a good place for her to ride in the car. Photo: Contributed - (Photo: Flickr user,...

Winter cycling

Jan 28, 2012 / 5:00 am

Photo: Contributed - (Flickr user, agathman) What are the rights and obligations of cyclists and motorists if the cyclist should choose to ride on the highway under snowy winter conditions? Uncleared pathways and cycling routes were forcing cyclists to choose to ride on the...

Hurry up and wait

Jan 21, 2012 / 5:00 am

Occasionally I look at a driver around me in traffic and ask myself "what can they be thinking?" Today I wondered if the driver behind me was thinking at all! Road conditions could be described as typical BC winter driving, but this guy was so close that I couldn't see snow between...

Left foot braking

Jan 14, 2012 / 5:00 am

I am occasionally asked about using the left foot for braking instead of the right foot. The usual justification given for this is that the brakes may be applied more quickly because the left foot is ready while the right foot is busy with the accelerator pedal. While there are different schools...

Driving at night in the rain

Jan 7, 2012 / 5:00 am

Photo: Contributed - (Flickr user, photojustice) If there is one driving situation that I like the least, it has to be driving at night when it is raining. It was like driving into a wet coal sack and many of the environmental cues that I used to position my vehicle were...
12883


About the author...

Tim Schewe has been writing his column for most of the 20 years in his traffic enforcement service in the RCMP. It was 'The Beat Goes On' in Fort St. John, 'Traffic Tips' in the South Okanagan and now 'Behind the Wheel' on Vancouver Island and now Castanet.net. Schewe retired from the Force in January of 2006, but the column became a habit and continues.

E-mail him your questions or concerns: comments@drivesmartbc.ca
 




12910


The views expressed are strictly those of the author and not necessarily those of Castanet. Castanet presents its columns "as is" and does not warrant the contents.



12311
RSS this page.
(Click for RSS instructions.)



Crime Stoppers
© 2010 Castanet.net