Continuing Discussion on Safe Road practices

Post by **Airconvent** » Sat Mar 24, 2007 3:24 pm

There was a spirited debate on this topic in the other unrelated thread, so I started a new one with correct subject title.
cheers

deepakrn · Post by **deepakrn** » Sat Mar 24, 2007 4:26 pm

Good that the thread was split off to this.

Addressing weixing's query in the other thread :

Do you mean if driver A is driving at 90km/h (assume speed limit at 90km/h) at the right lane and a car behind driver A is going faster than that and driver A need to give way to him or driver A will be summoned for 'inconsiderate driving'??

Yes, actually. Driver A should not have been occupying the fast lane at 90 in any case. He should've been doing 90 in the next lane of the expressway (Lane 2). The fast lane is the overtaking lane, and should only be occupied transiently by cars making overtaking maneuvres.

So the solution is for driver A to wait till the middle lane is clear, signal then move over and allow the faster driver to overtake. At no time should the faster driver close the gap to a dangerous distance (tailgate), this is dangerous.

The faster driver should now reciprocate by speeding up, putting a little distance, then moving back to the middle lane and (ideally) dropping back to the limit of 90. Now there will be a good safe distance between the two cars. If the faster driver wants to continue going over the speed limit, he is driving illegally, but that is his choice and he will "pay the piper" if he's unlucky.

Unfortunately, the fast lane in our expressways has lost its purpose as the overtaking lane, and has just become another lane to fill up with cars going 90 or even below. It's perfectly understandable in traffic jam situations (let's face it - where are cars going to go right?), but there's really no excuse for it in smooth flowing traffic.

jermng · Post by **jermng** » Sat Mar 24, 2007 4:28 pm

First things first, as to whether the law (this particular traffic law or any other law) is fair, is really how you look at it. There are a lot of the same laws which seem fair to one party but seems totally illogical and unfair to another party.

Secondly, a lot of laws are there to protect the public and a lot of times are not enforced very strictly, but when it comes to the crunch, these laws are taken out to punish offenders.

One good example is eating while driving. There is no strict law to say you can't eat (or smoke) while driving. However, you can be summoned for "driving without due care" if you lose control of your vehicle while eating.

Another very common occurrence is when people argue that it is legal to drive while using a hands-free set and communicating with a handphone as long as you are not physically holding the hand phone. However, if the driver fails to see a pedestrian crossing the road or drives out of his lane dangerously because he is too engrossed with the conversation, he can also be summoned for 'driving without due care'.

Just a little trivia, you know when it rains, pedestrians at traffic lights get very pissed off when a speeding car splashes water all over everybody? If you can get the license plate number of the car and have enough witnesses, you can report the driver for "inconsiderate' driving. HAHA ..

My point is this, the 2 specific laws - "driving without due care" and "inconsiderate driving" are there to protect other road users when the need arises. I don't think any police officer in his right mind will summon some one for driving on the right lane at the speed limit, however, if he/she causes a jam or other traffic inconveniences because of that, then there might be other implications.

Having said all that remember this, a summon is just a summon. At the end of the day, if a driver is required to be charged an investigation has to be held and only an Investigation Officer (IO) can put up charges against the driver.

So like what some one said earlier, although it'll be interesting to see some one brought to court for driving on the right lane at 90km/h, the chances of it happening are very slim. Cos even though the driver can be summoned, it takes more than that to bring the case to court.

Hope this helps. Anyway, I'm not here to argue who's right and who's wrong, just hope to put things into perspective cos I often see a lot of drivers who misunderstand the law and get into unnecessary disputes. (especially after a traffic accident)

Tachyon · Post by **Tachyon** » Sat Mar 24, 2007 4:42 pm

One more thing - Law is not about justice or 'fairness'. It's about keeping order in the society. I learned this the hard way...

cataclysm · Post by **cataclysm** » Sat Mar 24, 2007 5:34 pm

Rule of the thumb, tendency of speeding is INVERSELY proportion to the age of the driver. We all mellow with age or simply put, more Kia Si as you get older la! Or at lease that is how insurance company rate our premium.

river · Post by **river** » Sat Mar 24, 2007 6:23 pm

I never drive too fast coz I "realise" there are other happy families on the road too.

Never think that driving within speed limit is equal to safety !! Some slow driver are more dangerous than car racer.

There was time I think all driver should not drive too fast, now I just focus on making sure my family can see each other again. You can try but there is nothing you can do to stop people from driving fast. What if that chao ah beng just dont care to live another day?? Unless I drive a Tank, else I just let him vanish from my line of sight. Coz he will only serve a few year in jail (only if police/court can nail him down) if he "accidentally" kill a person on the road.

one note, dont be a jack a** by tailgating at >110km/hr and/or trun on your high light all the time. Don't find trouble for nothing ok...

On NS highway, I saw many cars that over take me with very high speed AGAIN at the check point... " haha... why so slow??... next time ride a bike lah..."

Post by **weixing** » Sat Mar 24, 2007 7:26 pm

Hi,

Yes, actually. Driver A should not have been occupying the fast lane at 90 in any case. He should've been doing 90 in the next lane of the expressway (Lane 2). The fast lane is the overtaking lane, and should only be occupied transiently by cars making overtaking maneuvres.

Hmm... Right lane is the overtaking lane.... OK, learn something today for a non-driver... hee hee

Anyway, talking about driving dangerously, I once saw a news in Taiwan on a car that was driving so fast that the car "slice" a person into halve when he hit him on the road. The force was so strong that the upper half of the body stuck on the car front. The car stopped after a short distance and the driver come out of the car to clear the upper half of the body off his car. Then he drive on like nothing had happened as shown in the video of a security camera... what a cold blooded driver!!

Also saw an article on the internet that UK had develop a system to control the speed of the car via satellite. When the system found the car's speed is faster than the road speed limit, it'll slow down the car automatically.

Lastly, hope all the drivers will drive safely on the road... as some had refer the car as the "weapon of mass destruction".

Have a nice day.

Clifford60 · Post by **Clifford60** » Sat Mar 24, 2007 7:50 pm

Fast or slow is not the key to safety, stay focus on the changes on the road is. F1 driver going above 300km/h, they are still a safe driver. So slow driver (relative) staying in the fast lane (lane 1) causes others to overtake on the left which is dangerous. If the slow driver has the consideration and gracious by moving to lane 2, the road can be safer. Some slow driver is so slow in lane 1 that they keep way within the speed limit, they do about <80km/h for a 90km/h expressway. If the slower driver is considerate, chances of tailgating will be low.

When I was driving oversea, I noticed that the front driver knowing that the back car was going at a higher speed than him/her, they will alway move to the slower lane even the expressway was quite empty and the gap between the cars can be > 200m.

Also, why traffic jam for no reason, because some kiasu and kiasi driver staying at the fast lane break their car for many reasons, keep within limit, keep "safe" distance from the front car, go down slope (flyover), etc. The result is a chain reaction of breaking by the back cars which sometime cause a standstill for cars futher behind.

So drivers, please be considerate and be gracious regardless of how fast or slow you are driving. We can make it a safer road for all.

Post by **acc** » Sat Mar 24, 2007 10:46 pm

Regardless, driving at over 200kmh, on public roads, whether in Singapore or Malaysia, is irresponsible and places the lives of other innocent road users in unneccesary risk.

jermng · Post by **jermng** » Sat Mar 24, 2007 11:04 pm

There was time I think all driver should not drive too fast, now I just focus on making sure my family can see each other again

I normally worry whether my SCT will lose collimation if I drive too fast or hit a hump too quick ...

*Hey, this is an astro forum after all!