With the return of our young people to school last week, it bears repeating that all drivers need to be careful on the streets.
Children are out in full force every morning and afternoon as they make their way to and from school.
They may be walking.
They may be driven by their parents.
They may live out in the county and need to ride the bus to get to school.
But however they make the trip, it’s necessary for drivers to be aware they are out there.
If they’re walking, drivers need to be extra vigilant. At any moment a child can dart out onto the street, and if the driver’s not paying attention, a tragedy could ensue.
If they’re being driven to school by their parents, other drivers need to remember that a parent dropping off a child could stop at any moment in front of the school.
And for those students who take the bus, other drivers must remember the rules about approaching school buses. If the lights are flashing, slow down. If the bus is stopped and the ‘stop’ sign on the side is sticking out, stop. Don’t start driving again until the sign is back in and the bus starts moving again.
In short, pay attention when driving. Situations can change in a split second, and if you’re not paying attention, you won’t have the time you need to react to prevent what could be a needless fatality on the roads.
This of course all ties in with the Alberta government’s new distracted-driving legislation.
In many respects, it’s a law that should be unnecessary.
There is no good reason to drive while distracted in any capacity. It’s simply too dangerous to divert your attention away from piloting a piece of metal and rubber that weighs several hundred kilograms and has the potential to kill anything it hits.
Yet day in and day out we see people doing everything but driving while behind the wheel.
Talking on the phone. Eating. Putting on makeup. Reading a book.
You name it, people do it.
But why?
Do they think that all those bad things, like getting in a collision or flying through a crosswalk and injuring pedestrians, only happen to others?
Possibly, but the true reason probably has to do with the fact many people are in too much of a rush. They’re in so much of a hurry that they think nothing of multitasking while operating a vehicle that can kill.
So in short, when you’re out on the roads, look up from your lap see what’s in front of you. There may not be anything there, but any way you slice it, that’s better than staring at the iPhone in your lap when there is something in front of you.
