VIDEO - If Cars Could Talk, Accidents Might be Avoidable

ted logoJennifer Healey is a research scientist who works for the semiconductor giant Intel developing the mobile devices of the future. One of those devices might be your car, and it will talk to other vehicles around it. If we can solve the privacy concerns, vehicles may be able to insure that their drivers avoid collisions.

Q&A - Pleasure use Only

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So I was rear ended today. There was no damage to my truck, but the car that hit me didn't come out of it too well. I phoned into ICBC to make an accident report. Through the process, I had told them that the guy who hit me was a pizza delivery guy. Turns out he had pleasure use only on his insurance. My question is, how will this affect his claim seeing he was working with his car at the time?

Random Thoughts While Stuck in Traffic

Traffic Signal OffHave you ever given any thought to how efficiently traffic lights control the flow of vehicles? I found out last Friday afternoon at 5:30 pm as I traveled the 7.6 kilometers between Superior Road in Lantzville and Northwest Bay Road in Nanoose Bay on Highway 19. Total elapsed time: 40 minutes for a trip Google Maps says should take 5 minutes.

CASE LAW - Banic-Govc v Timm

BC Courts Coat of ArmsNada Banic-Govc was approaching the exit of a parking lot at a slow speed intending to exit onto 1st Avenue in Surrey, B.C. by turning right. Gregory Timm approached the parking lot on 1st Avenue intending to turn left and enter it. The two drivers collided in the parking lot exit.

Problems with Deferred Maintenance

junker carCommercial vehicle maintenance is carefully regulated in our province. Power units are subject to inspections at a designated inspection facility every 6 months and trailers once every year. Drivers must do a pre- and post-trip safety inspection each time they drive. Defects must be noted in a written log and repairs carried out promptly, sometimes before leaving the driveway.

NEWS - Audit of Commercial Vehicle Safety

auditor general logoBC's Auditor General has released the report of an independent audit of commercial vehicle safety in our province. The audit looked at whether the Ministry of Transportation and Infrastructure, the Insurance Corporation of British Columbia and the Ministry of Public Safety and Solicitor General have effectively managed their respective programs to promote the safe operation of commercial vehicles on B.C. roads.

Fear of Police Retaliation

good cop bad cop imageLast week we looked at the story of a cyclist who was told by a constable that it was too dangerous to ride a bike on the road and he should find another hobby. Not knowing anything more about the encounter that produced this advice I asked the cyclist if he had done anything about questioning this attitude. No was the response, I'm afraid of retaliation.