I am blessed with readers who send me e-mail to suggest traffic safety topics, share a story or even a bit of humour. It's the humour that triggered this column, specifically a photo of people from a third world country packed into a vehicle in a manner that would be totally unacceptable today in British Columbia.
On May 3, 2023 Barry Johnson entered the intersection of West Hastings and Bute Streets in Vancouver. He was issued a traffic ticket for failing to stop at the yellow light. That ticket showed the location of Hastings and Bute Streets which Mr. Johnson told the justice did not exist at his dispute.
I see more and more bicycles with flashing rear lights. Is this actually a better option or is it just a fad? I would like to know what the law is and if there is any research on the effectiveness of rear flashing red lights as opposed to lights that are just on all the time.
The neighbourhoods where we live are important to us. When we see problems like vehicles speeding past our homes or a volume of traffic that disturbs the peace and quiet we want to act to solve our problem. One of the first things that we demand is for the authorities to put up stop signs.
What's behind me and why should I care? I'm driving down the highway and I'm certainly not going to back into something! There are at least two common hazards that occur regularly behind every driver and looking out for them is just good sense.
Question: I am a driving student, and I am interested to know what the law is with respect to parking near a bus stop. Sometimes there is a bus stop sign as well as a "no stopping before this point" sign about 5 meters after. Other times there is only the bus stop sign. In the latter case, how much space must legally be left between the rear of your car and the bus stop sign?
If a person is not satisfied with the response of the local police to a driving complaint, what is the next step? I know for a fact my wife and I had the offending vehicle, driver's description and B.C. license number correct.
Question: Our strata road is about a mile long and we have our own pickup truck rigged up for snow plowing. The vehicle is not licensed as the intent is for use solely on our posted private road. However, I have come to learn that the operator, as a favour to neighbours outside our strata, has taken to plowing some of the public road, an area rarely addressed on a timely basis by the road maintenance contractor.
Question: I have been wondering about pedestrians and pedestrian signals in Vancouver. Long after their signal has turned to 'Don't Walk' - giving motorists a chance to complete a turn - they continue to fill the crosswalks like they had some kind of right of way!
Passing zones always presented interesting situations for traffic enforcement. There were many times when I would find one driver in the right lane travelling at or near the speed limit and another overtaking on the left at a speed significantly in excess of that limit.