Traffic Deaths and "Now What" (Page 2): So, your house is burning or you're having a heart attack. You want them to go the speed limit? That's what lights and sirens are for. Also for...

SteveR Loc: Michigan

NDMarks wrote:

One problem with the breaking the law argument is that certain vehicles (police, fire etc) have a special license plate that makes the driver immune from many ordinary laws.

So, your house is burning or you're having a heart attack. You want them to go the speed limit? That's what lights and sirens are for. Also for chasing bad guys.

flyboy61 Loc: The Great American Desert

Scruples wrote:

There seems to be an apparent lack of concern for others. I have seen people blow through stop signs and traffic lights. Many have developed the mind set “You First After Me!”

True, that!

bnsf

One thing I have noticed bicycles do not obey traffic lights and stop signs. Seem them ride thru red lights and stop signs. Then when they get hit by an auto they claim they have the right of way which they do not. Seen a accident when the vehicle had the right of way and the bike rider ran the red light and was struck by auto. Police officer seen it and told bike ride that he was at fault running the traffic light. The bicyclist took the driver to court and I was a witness for driver as was the Police officer. Told the judge what I saw and the Police Officer said the same thing. Judge threw the bicyclist lawsuit out.

JBuckley

I've often seen groups of "road crews" working along highways, roadways, and even on sidewalks, near to the roadways.
There is (always) one person that is designated as the "look out" and is armed with a handheld freon powered horn to tell the workers that there could be danger approaching and to move inside of a safety zone.
When walking along a street, roadway, (or freeway), there should always be, at least one person that takes the initiative to keep an eye on incoming traffic 110% of the time. That would save a lot of sad endings after taking a walk or (run) nearest the streets of California.

Scruples Loc: Brooklyn, New York

I hope that things change for the better. We could all start driving 10 or 15 mph slower.

I leave my house at about 6:30AM a head off to work early. I get to work at 8AM. I have my breakfast in the work lounge. I go into work at 9:30AM. I am relaxed and work comfortably til 6PM.

robertjerl Loc: Corona, California

NDMarks wrote:

Robertjerl talked about a car changing lanes right... (show quote)

Lord, my bike was a 1983 Kawasaki Spectre 750 Limited Edition in Black and Gold. You could be cruising at 35-40 and pop a wheelie with two people riding. I know, I taught my wife to ride it and one night on a cruise of THE BOULEVARD of the area when a low rider load of "Vatos Locos" pulled up revving their engine, cat calls etc. challenging us to a race. Debra yelled something unladylike in Spanish back, then down shifted and twisted the throttle to full. The bike popped a wheelie and burned rubber. I had to hang on and stomp with both feet to keep us from going over backward and get the front wheel back down. We beat the low rider the rest of the way down the block to the light. They pulled up and wanted a rematch. The light changed and this time she took off without the wheelie but accelerated 3/4 of the way down the block until the next light turned red, then started braking stopping right on the crosswalk sign still about 4 car lengths in front of the low rider. Just as they pulled up, the light changed, and they took off down the cross street with no more challenges or cat calls.

Because I didn't trust my bum left knee to hold the bike up four years ago I covered it on the patio and when my knee didn't heal I donated it to charity
3 years ago. The day the tow company parked it with the other donations to be delivered to the charity a collector came by, saw it (I had kept it in almost new condition) and wrote them a check to give the charity for about 3 times what I had thought it was worth. They gave me an updated receipt for my taxes. I miss that bike, I owned it for just short of 30 years

NDMarks Loc: Dublin, Ca

One thing about lights and sirens that most people don't understand - running code does not mean you have the right of way absolutely. It means you are requesting the right of way and other drivers are legally supposed to give it. When I drove a fire truck, part of our driving training was to be especially careful when going against a red light at an intersection. We were supposed to either stop first or at least slow down before going through an intersection against a light. A local ambulance company actually requires their drivers to come to a stop first.

JBRIII

robertjerl wrote:

I have always considered a % of drivers, pedestria... (show quote)

I have never written a motor cycle since I was a child visiting relatives in Georgia, but people I've known who do report the same thing, people deliberately going after them.

jerryc41 Loc: Catskill Mts of NY

NDMarks wrote:

One problem with the breaking the law argument is that certain vehicles (police, fire etc) have a special license plate that makes the driver immune from many ordinary laws.

Yes, unfortunately.

Mobad58

This is why I no longer cycle on the roadways...it's mountain biking only for me!

rcarol

jerryc41 wrote:

A few weeks ago, I posted about a crash that kille... (show quote)

My observations over the past several years is that bicycle riders and walkers no longer wear clothing that is highly visible at night. When I was in school many years ago, it was preached to wear something white in either of these situations. Today, there are reflective materials that are far better than wearing something white. Yet, what I see is people wearing black clothing at night. This is a disaster waiting to happen.

jerryc41 Loc: Catskill Mts of NY

rcarol wrote:

My observations over the past several years is that bicycle riders and walkers no longer wear clothing that is highly visible at night. When I was in school many years ago, it was preached to wear something white in either of these situations. Today, there are reflective materials that are far better than wearing something white. Yet, what I see is people wearing black clothing at night. This is a disaster waiting to happen.

jerryc41 Loc: Catskill Mts of NY

Mobad58 wrote:

This is why I no longer cycle on the roadways...it's mountain biking only for me!

I've never used the bike that was given to me. I'm going to sell it in the spring.

flyboy61 Loc: The Great American Desert

JBRIII wrote:

I have never written a motor cycle since I was a child visiting relatives in Georgia, but people I've known who do report the same thing, people deliberately going after them.

I was taking my turn taking reports one rainy afternoon, when I received a call from a serviceman stationed at a nearby Military base.
He said, and I recorded that he was almost off base, when a fellow on a Motorcycle made a rude gesture at him. He said; "I tried to swerve and 'get' him, but I missed, and hit the car behind him!"
Young, immortal and immature!
Another time, my son was on his way home from work, in a bad mood, and was tailgating a woman with her children in the back seat. She slammed on her brakes, causing him to rear end her car. How do I know? Her skidmarks were behind where the crash took place!

JohnSwanda Loc: San Francisco

jerryc41 wrote:

A few weeks ago, I posted about a crash that kille... (show quote)

I think in most cases of careless people killing or injuring people, they are carelessly breaking a law. Or sometimes the victim is carelessly breaking a law. There is almost always someone at fault, or both could be. Like failing to yield to a pedestrian, or a pedestrian walking into traffic without looking, both violations of right of way. Distracted driving, walking, or bicycling. A public awareness campaign is good, but also enforcing the laws. Too often it's written off as just an accident.