Mays Street & Old Settlers Park
Danger Alert!: More and More Unskilled Motorists
RECEIVED Wed., May 31, 2006
Dear Editor,
Since the state of Texas no longer requires training for drivers of motor vehicles, the streets of Austin have grown more dangerous. Motorists have forgotten that stop signs and intersections are for traffic stops, not personal stops or parking. Parking within 30 feet of a stop sign is illegal. Orderly traffic flow is based on communication. When you stop at an intersection, you are communicating with other road users. Starting and stopping unpredictably at intersections sends misleading signals.
A friend of mine was recently clobbered by one of these unpredictable motorists. My friend, on a bicycle, had the right of way as he approached an intersection where a car was sitting at a stop sign. Since the car remained stopped at the stop sign, my friend thought that the driver had seen him and was yielding in accordance with traffic law. But no. She was stopped for some personal reason, and she started up again for some personal reason, hit my friend broadside, and put him in the hospital with a broken shoulder.
Driving backward has become very popular with Austin's motorists. Driving backward around corners is especially deadly. An Austin police officer ran over and killed his partner while driving backward in pursuit of a suspect on foot. Why didn't he know better? Backing at high speed out of a driveway with the windows rolled up leaves a motorist both unable to see clearly and unable to hear warning screams.
Too many motorists lack both safety skills and knowledge of traffic laws. Many police officers are similarly uninformed, so enforcement is rare. We cyclists and pedestrians need to be conspicuous, predictable, and extremely wary. As motor vehicle drivers grow steadily less skilled, it requires more and more skill to walk and bicycle in Austin.
Since the state of Texas no longer requires training for drivers of motor vehicles, the streets of Austin have grown more dangerous. Motorists have forgotten that stop signs and intersections are for traffic stops, not personal stops or parking. Parking within 30 feet of a stop sign is illegal. Orderly traffic flow is based on communication. When you stop at an intersection, you are communicating with other road users. Starting and stopping unpredictably at intersections sends misleading signals.
A friend of mine was recently clobbered by one of these unpredictable motorists. My friend, on a bicycle, had the right of way as he approached an intersection where a car was sitting at a stop sign. Since the car remained stopped at the stop sign, my friend thought that the driver had seen him and was yielding in accordance with traffic law. But no. She was stopped for some personal reason, and she started up again for some personal reason, hit my friend broadside, and put him in the hospital with a broken shoulder.
Driving backward has become very popular with Austin's motorists. Driving backward around corners is especially deadly. An Austin police officer ran over and killed his partner while driving backward in pursuit of a suspect on foot. Why didn't he know better? Backing at high speed out of a driveway with the windows rolled up leaves a motorist both unable to see clearly and unable to hear warning screams.
Too many motorists lack both safety skills and knowledge of traffic laws. Many police officers are similarly uninformed, so enforcement is rare. We cyclists and pedestrians need to be conspicuous, predictable, and extremely wary. As motor vehicle drivers grow steadily less skilled, it requires more and more skill to walk and bicycle in Austin.
Yours truly,
Amy Babich
Amy Babich
