Highway Manners And Commonsense Rules Of The Road
Driving is a privilege, not a right. That privilege is granted by the people who constitute the governing body; State, District, Region, Country or whatever. It is granted after the driver applicant has passed written and driving tests showing that they have learned the basic rules-of-the-road, both written and implied, as well as possessing the manual skills to operate a vehicle safely. In some areas of the world, these tests and the driving requirements require a high level of skill and much study. In other areas there is less emphasis on these important lessons, resulting in a high percentage of highway deaths and injuries to young people. Many of these teenagers and young adults make fatal errors before they develop the skills to drive responsibly.
Attention diverting activities are also responsible for many automobile collisions. The advent of modern communication devices is largely responsible for much of this inattention. Texting while driving, talking on the cell phone, selecting music on an i-Pod or the CD player or simply talking animatedly with a passenger are frequently the causes of vehicular mishaps. Eating is another diversion that infringes upon the safety, as is involvement with the children in the backseat. In short, a driver should be focused on driving and little else.
“Drive Friendly, Courtesy is Contagious,” was a safety slogan of the State of
Texas, USA, during the 1970s. It made people aware that they weren’t alone on the highway and they should extend courtesy to other drivers. In return, other drivers were influenced to extend courtesy to others, and so-on down the line. Common courtesy goes a long way towards preventing “road-rage,” an action that leads to intended collisions or other automotive mischief. Check out the attached link to a film clip of what a lack of courtesy did to a couple of drivers in Russia, a country that is just now experiencing the frustrations of traffic backups and gridlock at intersections.
The clip is funny in a sense, but illustrates graphically how a lack of courtesy grows into outright maliciousness.
Many years ago, Walt Disney Studios produced a cartoon about drivers and their personality changes that occurred when they took the wheel. The main character is a mild-mannered guy (Goofy) who becomes a raging demon behind the wheel. His normal courtesy and hesitancy vanishes and in a Jeckel and Hyde transformation, he becomes a red-eyed monster when he gets into traffic. He cuts people off, races away from traffic lights and is a poor, inconsiderate driver in general. Of course this activity ends up in a collision.
The Disney cartoon is intended to be both funny and informative. It is both, with the red-eyed driver being a parody of what really happens on highways throughout the world. So, when you get behind the wheel of your ride, think a little more about your actions, be more attentive to your driving and what is going on around you and you’ll probably survive to drive again.
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