Driving in Australia
Air, Apparent.
A band called “The Hollies” released a song in the mid 1970s called “(All I Need Is)The Air That I Breathe“. We humans breathe air. It’s made up of 78% nitrogen which is an inert (doesn’t react with anything) gas, oxygen at 21%, 0.93% argon and various other gases. CO2 or carbon dioxide is measured to be around 0.04%. It’s the oxygen and CO2 that we carbon based lifeforms worry about the most. But what does it mean when it comes to those other living, breathing things called cars?
Bugger all actually. Cars breathe in air via intakes or through air filters in pre- fuel injected cars via carbies. At the other end comes out CO2 and a smattering of other gases, and that’s the cycle of life. BUT, have you ever tried to push a car with a flat tyre? Yup, air inside comes out and makes rolling a car near nigh impossible. So we fill them with air and away we go.
Air, I hear you ask? But that nice man at the service and tyre shop said I should get nitrogen in my tyres, right? Well, in a way, by using air you’ve already got nitrogen. 80%, remember?
But he said it’ll reduce wear and tear on my tyres? Well, no. The biggest cause of wear and tear on tyres is how we drive the cars that use them. If we also don’t check the pressures, so if the tyres are over or under inflated, either of these contributes to wear and tear. When air goes in (80% nitrogen, remember) and the pressures are right, then wear and tear should only be dependent on how you drive.
He also said that nitrogen improves ride quality? Ride quality is dependent on tyre pressure, springs and shocks working properly, road surfaces…you get the picture. So if your air filled tyres are at the right pressure, then ride quality remains the same irrespective of 80 or 100 percent nitrogen.
I’m sensing a pattern here. He also said that by using nitrogen it’ll make the tyre run cooler? Hmm, a toughie….ah…nup. It’s the moisture content of the air, so in fact, if you use dry normal compressed air, it’ll also run cooler., as long as, again, it’s at the correct pressure and the tyre isn’t overloaded.
So, the bottom line, if I’m charged five or ten bucks per tyre to get nitrogen in, I’m just wasting money? In a nitrogen filled nutshell, yep. Don’t waste your money and say no to nitrogen.
Safety and Propaganda.
The NSW government’s road safety office has saved a squidzillion on PR spin doctors over the last decade as they continue to repeat the same mind dangerous mantra of “slow down, speed kills” and have added “distractions aren’t the problem”.
Not once though has any statistical analysis shown anything more than 43% of crashes being related to excess velocity for the conditions. According to the NSW Centre for Road Safety it was 40% in 2017. Let’s face it folks, that’s really what speeding is. Too many roads and areas are limited to what really should be a higher velocity over distance. But of course it’s due to a spurt of fatal crashes in a the space of a week or so late in 2017 that drives (no pun intended) the monotonous drone from the pollies and certain police PR people.
Let’s go simple for a moment: speed doesn’t kill. If it was the underlying reason then deaths on Australian roads would be in the thousands per day. Here’s what killed people: Crash causes NSW 2017 What’s disturbingly noticeable is how high a proportion of fatalities were country roads based and on a non-straight road, followed by head on impacts.
What does kill are drivers that Simply Don’t Care. They don’t care if they pull out in front of you. They don’t care if they stop in a merging lane. They don’t care if they’re on a motorbike and will travel at twenty below a posted limit whilst shaking their head at the driver behind them. They don’t care about amber and red lights. They don’t care about having headlights on when they should. They don’t care about indicators. They don’t care about you, themselves, and they certainly don’t care about road rules. The link above shows that speed may be factor but it’s nowhere near as big as the real reason: bad driving.
Don’t laugh at this seemingly innocuous statement. You’ll hear of “cars losing control” and unless the car is fully autonomous and has a does of the HAL 9000s, it’s utterly wrong. Any decent driver training organisation will tell you, without smiling, that it’s the failure of the organic component of a car that causes crashes. Not accident. Crashes.
This is why people die on the roads. It’s stuff-all to do with excess velocity. It’s got plenty to do with attitude. It’s got plenty to do with the tunnel visioned focus of governments and road bodies that are in it to promote ONLY their way of doing things.
Speed doesn’t kill. Government refusal to see past speeding and acknowledge they’re wrong, and people that don’t care, kill.
What’s needed is a complete and utter wholesale change to how the government sees road safety. A massive rethink is needed, and, as hard as it may appear to see, a reversal of the “speed kills” policy. Back to basics. Check the standards of driver educators. Educate and inform people that the basics that are being overlooked are why higher levels of driving standards that should be followed. Mandatory driver training sessions with properly accredited groups should be paired with a minimum of ten hours.
Driving a car at any speed isn’t hard. Driving appropriately isn’t hard either. But speed doesn’t kill. Bad drivers do.
Be Coming Home After Christmas
It’s just five days until Christmas 2017 at the time of writing. It’s a time where we relax, maybe have a break from work, and we go driving just that little bit more. However we’re also told that this is a dangerous time of year to be on the roads and perhaps there’s some validity in that. Here’s some things you can do to help make our roads just that little bit safer.
Indicate.
This is constantly seen as the number one irritant to drivers in just about every survey about what annoys drivers. But why then are so many cars seen to have “broken indicators” or, as some cynically put it, “have run out of indicator fluid”? Cars are designed and engineered so the basics of driving are a fingertip away, and indicator stalks, be they on the left or right hand side of the steering column, are such.
Indicators are not optionable extras, nor are they difficult to use. If you’re changing lanes, indicate. If you’re merging, indicate. If you’re in a roundabout, indicate. And this doesn’t mean just a cursory flicker or two. Current laws state that “sufficient indication must be given”. Far too many drivers think one/two/three is enough. You should be indicating before leaving your lane and finishing indicating once the whole of your vehicle is the new lane. “NSW Roundabout indication rules” and “Top 10 misunderstood road rules”
Roundabouts require you to to indicate as well, especially with three lane roundabouts. Let’s say the roundabout is a Y shape and you’re going left; it’s simple, you indicate left. If you’re going right, you indicate right to go in and then indicate left when exiting. That’s the law.
Headlights.
If you’re out and about and cars are coming toward you with headlights on, there’s a fair bet there’s a good reason why. Most cars today are built with either an auto headlight on function or with LED DRLs fitted. DRL stands for Daytime Running Lights and are in no way intended to be a replacement for headlights. When your car starts and these come on, it also doesn’t mean the lights at the back come on either. When you activate your headlights, then your taillights will come on, and it’s a great idea to do so if you have a dark metallic or silver car and the weather is rainy or clouded over. It REALLY does make your car so much more visible and so much more safer.
Passing the vehicle ahead.
Planning for a lane change isn’t hard. As a driver you should be looking ahead more than to the rear, and too often vehicles are seen almost touching the rear of the car ahead before they suddenly swoop left or right, and again generally without indicating. A well prepared driver should be able to judge the of the traffic and be able to switch lanes smoothly. One simple yet safety improving reason is: what happens if the vehicle you’re getting close to suddenly brakes hard? Bang, you’re in their rear.
Looking ahead also helps with vehicle behaviour; if one car only swerves, well, maybe it’s a tired driver, but if a succession of cars suddenly do it’s a possible indicator there’s something untoward on the road, like a pothole or something that’s fallen off a vehicle. Keep an eye out and be in no doubt.
Red lights/amber lights/green lights.
Cynics would say there’s a lot of colour blind people on our roads, thinking amber means speed up and jump the red. MOST intersections are researched and have their traffic light timing adjusted for traffic flow, with the change from green to amber to red set and a predetermined interval. There’s a set distance that is allowed for along with time in order for drivers to utilise the amber light for its intended use: to slow down and stop safely.
Distractions.
It seems unbelievable that having earphones in whilst driving is still not illegal as it isolates you from an important part of driving; the aural connection to what’s happening outside the car. Sure we can up the volume of the audio system but by having earphones in you’re actually locking out more of the ambient sound.
Kids are always a “good” distraction and we’re certainly not about to tell you how to deal with your children but it’s worth reminding you.
Also, bugs, cigarettes, drinks, and the like need to be considered. And please! if you have bluetooth in your vehicle for calls and audio streaming, use that rather than using your hands.
Car Maintenance.
Tyre pressures and tread depth, windscreen wiper fluid and radiator fluid levels, oil levels, all of these are easily checked before taking your car out. Tyre pressures are marked on the sidewall or on a sticker mounted somewhere inside your vehicle. Tread depth is easily identified visually and a bald tyre is simply no good on a wet road. If the tread looks more worn on one side than the other then a visit to your local tyre shop is recommended. Windscreen wiper fluid is specially formulated so good old Windex as a replacement is not recommended. Oils too are specific to certain types of car (petrol v diesel generally) but an older engine may also need a different oil compared to the new Mustang your Lotto winnings have bought you.
How does the dash look? Is it dusty? Does the touchscreen have fingerprints all over it? Give these a clean before heading out as these can sometimes catch the eye at the wrong moment.
Don’t. Drive. Tired.
It’s far too easy to misjudge your own endurance levels when it comes to long distance driving. Sure, we can sit inside our car for an hour plus in peak hour traffic but we don’t cover the same distance as Sydney to Canberra, Perth to Geraldton, Melbourne to Albury. Sometimes long drives are taken on Boxing day or New Year’s Day, and the body hasn’t recovered from a belly full, be it alcohol or a good roast. Studies show that Microsleeps are a major contributor to crashes, so keep fluid levels, like a sports drink or water, available.
BA.
That’s Bad Attitude. And it sucks. Road rage incidents are full of bad attitude and generally because someone can’t be bothered following the road rules because they don’t they the law applies to them. Tailgating, lane hogging, pulling in front of someone and suddenly braking, and so on are fine examples of BA. If you have BA, stay away.
Speeding.
Finally, the big one. Speeding in and of itself is not dangerous, otherwsie our roads would be populated by ghosts. It’s when combined with tiredness, alcohol, inattention, a bad attitude, mistiming the traffic lights, worn tyres, that excess velocity over distance causes the heartbreak it does.
Use your mirrors, look at the traffic ahead, look for the one or two vehicles that seem to be travelling a whole lot quicker than they should be and do your safest change of lane to get out of the way. Because unless you think WW2 was a fantastic comedy, you don’t want to be that person to answer a knock on the door and see two sombre looking members of the constabulary about to tell you a loved one has died at the hands (wheels?) of someone else driving badly.
Please, do have a safe Christmas for 2017, a wonderful New Year’s as we move to 2018 so we can all be coming home after Christmas.
Are You Naughty Or Nice Behind The Wheel?
Even if it’s a very, very long time since you believed in the white-bearded guy in the red suit who makes a list and checks it twice, you’re never too old to stop caring about whether you’re naughty or nice. Especially when you’re behind the wheel of a car.
There’s something about being enclosed in a bubble of metal and glass that makes you feel isolated and in your own little world where you don’t have to worry about others. However, this is an illusion or possibly a delusion. It’s not just that we can see you picking your nose or singing badly when you’ve stopped at the red lights. Even when you’re driving, good manners – being nice – are important. You certainly aren’t the only driver on the road.
It’s especially important to be polite to each other on the road at this time of year, and not because you want to be on Santa’s Nice list rather than the Naughty list. There tend to be more people on the roads for a number of reasons. There are those who are doing a Chris Rea and driving home for Christmas. There are those who are heading out Christmas shopping. It’s school holidays, so the Mums and Dads who haven’t knocked off for their Christmas break need to get kids over to Grandma’s or the babysitter’s place and then get to work… and Grandma/the babysitter decides that a trip to the park or the swimming pool complex or the movies is the best form of entertainment for that day. Those who are old enough to still have school holidays and are old enough to have a licence are also out and about on the roads. Add in hot summer temperatures and less-than-stellar air conditioning and you have a situation where tempers are likely to get a little frayed.
In this situation, relaxing and having good manners on the road will help us all get where we need to and want to go without straying into the road rage or stress zone.
Situation: You need to change lanes and a gap has suddenly opened up beside you.
Naughty Behaviour: Duck immediately into the next lane, after checking the blind spot over your shoulder (even checking it twice) and/or making the most of the blind spot assistance package in your nice new car.
Nice Behaviour: Indicating as you do that quick check before you change lanes. It isn’t hard, people!
Situation: You’re in a queue of traffic and notice a car at the exit from a car park waiting for a gap.
Naughty Behaviour: Keep on going, serene in the belief that the traffic lights will arrange for a gap for that person, and that the Give Way rules were invented for a reason.
Nice Behaviour: Slow down, let a gap open and wave the person waiting into the stream of traffic. It only costs you a few seconds. Incidentally, this is the sort of thing that driverless cars can’t cope with: they can’t handle the multitude of ways that people wave other drivers (and pedestrians and bikes) through into gaps.
If you are the person who has been let into the stream of traffic, acknowledge this with a wave and a smile. It’s polite to say thank you (someone ought to invent a thank you indicator).
Situation: Someone cuts into the gap in the lane in front of you without indicating, forcing you to step on the brakes (or activating the collision avoidance system).
Naughty Behaviour: Lean on the horn, shake fists, swear and pull fingers. Tailgate them.
Nice Behaviour: Do nothing except grumble a bit, then get on with your driving.
Situation: Someone with an L plate or even a P plate takes their time at a roundabout and doesn’t take a gap that you know was perfectly safe.
Naughty Behaviour: Honk at them, tailgate, shake fists, yell insults, etc.
Nice Behaviour: Be patient. The whole point of those L and P plates is to indicate to the rest of the world that this driver isn’t experienced and might not do things the way you would because it takes time to learn these things. Driving is kind of like handwriting and what we do for the first year or so tends to be a bit wonky. It’s also possible that the driver of that car has seen something that you, being further back in the stream of the traffic, haven’t, like an oncoming ambulance with the sirens and lights going. Or a line of baby ducks crossing the road.
Situation: The light has turned orange ahead of you.
Naughty Behaviour: Speed up so you can get through it safely.
Nice Behaviour: Slow down and stop, as long as you can do this safely. This is one of the basic road rules and the Naughty behaviour is Naughty in the eyes of the cops as well as your fellow drivers (and pedestrians).
Situation: You’re cruising a bit slower than the speed limit, possibly because you like to take it easy around the corners. The road straightens up and the car behind you gets close and looks like it could overtake you.
Naughty Behaviour: Speed up and go at the full open road limit so the other driver either has to give up on the idea of overtaking you or has to really floor it to get past you (some vehicles are better at doing this than others).
Nice Behaviour: Either keep on at your slightly slower cruising speed or else pull over to the side (if you can) to let the other driver overtake safely. It’s not a race, after all!
In all situations, the best things that you can do are the same things that you do with face-to-face interactions: say thank you (hand signal: wave), say sorry (hand signal: wave), be patient with other people and do unto others as you’d have them do to you.
Level 2, 9 Help Street