Video

TED Talks challenge fascinating thinkers and doers to give the talk of their lives in 18 minutes or less. Ramona Pierson was crossing the street when a drunk driver ran a red light and struck her in the crosswalk. She spent 18 months in a coma and then was placed in a senior citizens home to recover.

We all like to think that we are observant and as safe drivers, nothing should get by our eagle eyes. However, there is a feature of how our brain processes what we are seeing called situational blindness. This video from the UK is actually part of a cycling safety campaign and shows how much the scene in our visual field can change without us noticing.

A short video introducing the five pillars of the Global Plan for Road Safety. These pillars are Road Safety Management, Safer Roads and Mobility, Safer Vehicles, Safer Road Users and Post Crash Response.

Join the folks at Fifth Gear as they crash a Ford Focus into a barrier at 120 mph or 193 km/h. After you take a look at the result, remember that a two vehicle head on crash at freeway speeds here in BC is somewhat the same. Two vehicles coming together at 100 KM/H each is the energy equivalent of this car striking the barrier at 200 km/h. Regardless of the circumstances, you don't want this to happen to you.

Have you ever met or been overtaken by an emergency vehicle with lights flashing and sirens wailing when you were navigating a roundabout? What to do? Well, a roundabout is just another type of intersection, so you must immediately move out of it, stop and remain stopped until the emergency vehicle or vehicles pass by.

This Dutch Hyundai Velostar advertising video (subtitled in English) could really make you think about which side of the vehicle you exit on. In this case, the Hyundai concept is that you cannot exit on the driver's side because there is no rear passenger door there, forcing passengers to exit on the safe side.

Even though this is a year old, it is still an interesting video. Here is the description provided with it on YouTube:

Marking the back to school term, Preventable together with BCAA Road Safety and the District of West Vancouver have launched an optical illusion geared to making drivers slow down at high-risk intersections.

Rock the Gear Inc. is a national, not-for-profit organization that focuses on motorcycle safety apparel education and provides a community of support for those who want to learn more and/or become involved. Brittany Morrow is the President and founder, this is her story:

Definitely a different video, produced for the Global Road Safety Partnership, uses a character called Steve to demonstrate the hidden dangers on our roads. Worldwide, 1.3 million "Steves" die every year in road incidents, which is the number one cause of death for young people today.

Colliding with the rear or side of a commercial vehicle can be more than a headache. Currently North American standards have required a stronger rear underride protection, but there is no requirement at all for side underride protection. This video illustrates the hazard and demonstrates the added protection for side underride protection currently mandated in Europe.