Intersections

Question: What I would like to know who and how to petition to get better speed signage or to have an intersection evaluated for safety. Please respond to my query as I would like to campaign to make a change at an intersection near my home before the 'near misses' that happen there regularly become more serious.

"Tell them that they need to be in the proper lane before they turn" says one reader. Equally important is the need to end up in the proper lane after the turn. Attention to detail here provides for a smooth flow of traffic and less chance of being involved in a collision.

Love them or hate them, roundabouts and traffic circles are a fact of life for BC drivers. They slow traffic at intersections without stopping it, providing good throughput and increased safety. They are also environmentally friendly as idle time at intersections can be reduced or eliminated depending on traffic volume. All that is left for us to do, if my e-mail is any indication, is to learn to use them properly.

Question: Big trucks are allowed by law to swing wide if necessary in order to make a wide right turn at an intersection. If you don't heed the signal and pull along side you could be squeezed between the truck and the curb.

This is the story of a two vehicle collision that happened in the uncontrolled intersection of Jervis Street and Gordon Avenue in Port Coquitlam, B.C. Michelle Olchowy was travelling south on Jervis Street and Clifford Tomkulak was travelling east on Gordon Avenue. Ms. Olchowy entered the intersection within a second or fraction of a second of Mr. Tomkulak.

William Vance was riding an unlicenced, uninsured off road motorcycle southbound on 198 Street in Langley, B.C. He was not wearing a helmet and was exceeding the speed limit. Cristine Cartwright was eastbound on 21 Avenue and had stopped at the stop sign before entering 198 Street intending to turn northbound. Vision was limited for drivers on 21 avenue looking northbound by roadside vegetation.

The next time you are at the front of the lineup waiting for the signal to turn green, watch the driver beside you. Often when the traffic signal turns green they will go without looking to the left or right for hazards.

The driver of this car may not have noticed the flashing right turn signal on the bus, but learned the hard way that it was worth paying attention to.

This excellent video by Young Drivers of Canada explains the philosophy of the stop sign. If you approach thinking "stop", you are more apt to grant the required right of way to other road users. If you approach intending to slow down just enough to avoid a ticket, you are thinking "go" and will be less likely to take the necessary action, stopping, if you are required to grant right of way to others.

Would you write something in one of your articles about people turning at intersections and immediately going into the right lane and cutting off other motorist merging into traffic? This is one of my biggest pet peeves in the traffic world. I have seen and experience where to person who is merging is getting the horn and finger wave even though they were in the right.