Alberta passes distracted driving law

[T@T]

Can't link it but anyone see the vid going viral on facebook on this subject?.

[Dion]

Originally Posted by Swarly

Is that a serious statement? When you look at a phone does the rest of your brain shut off or something? I just can't comprehend what some of the people in this thread think happens by checking a text for 10 seconds while stopped. Why would checking a text make you take your foot off the brake? The bigger problem I think is the type of person who this would happen to would likely take their foot off the brake while daydreaming at a light just as much. These people should not be driving in the first place.

It has nothing to do with daydreaming Driver distraction where your focus goes from driving to looking at texts.

[Burninator]

Truck in front me left a gap big enough for 3 cars to turn in front of him. Got beside him at the next light and he was texting. Slow off the line again when that light turned green.

[Swarly]

Originally Posted by Dion

It has nothing to do with daydreaming Driver distraction where your focus goes from driving to looking at texts.

I was saying that anyone dumb enough to take their foot off the brake because they happen to glance at a text (your example), will likely do the same thing for a myriad of other reasons (such as simply daydreaming). This type of person should not be driving period.

Not many people I know of that can't handle looking at a phone and NOT taking their foot off the brake. The root cause of someone taking their foot off the brake would be their own stupidity, nothing to do with a text.

[Swarly]

Originally Posted by Burninator

Truck in front me left a gap big enough for 3 cars to turn in front of him. Got beside him at the next light and he was texting. Slow off the line again when that light turned green.

Can we please stop with all the anecdotal evidence of "I saw x do y, they were texting. texting is bad"

One person says texters are always slow off the light, I respond with I'm usually the first off, then I get blamed for not paying enough attention before proceeding into an intersection..... so this guy took more care and now he is a slow texter not paying attention to the flow of traffic.... on and on it goes in circles. I see people proceed after a red light at many varying velocities and following distances, very rarely does anything other than personal driving style play any part into it.

I see multiple stupid acts on the road on a daily basis none of them are texting, just strugglers who can't drive. I've agreed all along texting while driving is dumb and distracting. But sitting at a red light not moving is not driving. [before someone jumps in quoting the Calgary road bylaws stating that being stopped is technically driving, I know. I understand the law, I just think that part of it is a stupid a** law]

[Dion]

Originally Posted by Swarly

I was saying that anyone dumb enough to take their foot off the brake because they happen to glance at a text (your example), will likely do the same thing for a myriad of other reasons (such as simply daydreaming). This type of person should not be driving period.

Not many people I know of that can't handle looking at a phone and NOT taking their foot off the brake. The root cause of someone taking their foot off the brake would be their own stupidity, nothing to do with a text.

I know people who have been distracted while looking for an FM station or a song on a CD and have eased up the pressure on their brakes, with out knowing, and have hit the rear end of a vehicle. It's not a case of someone who should not be driving but rather a person who should have all their focus on the vehicle they are driving.

[Swarly]

Originally Posted by Dion

I know people who have been distracted while looking for an FM station or a song on a CD and have eased up the pressure on their brakes, with out knowing, and have hit the rear end of a vehicle. It's not a case of someone who should not be driving but rather a person who should have all their focus on the vehicle they are driving.

so they weren't texting? things like this happened before cell phones were around? we should ban all radios! or maybe some people are so bad at driving that they should not have a licence.

[Dion]

Originally Posted by Swarly

so they weren't texting? things like this happened before cell phones were around? we should ban all radios! or maybe some people are so bad at driving that they should not have a licence.

I'm not suggesting such a thing.

[Regorium]

Originally Posted by Dion

I know people who have been distracted while looking for an FM station or a song on a CD and have eased up the pressure on their brakes, with out knowing, and have hit the rear end of a vehicle. It's not a case of someone who should not be driving but rather a person who should have all their focus on the vehicle they are driving.

No. This is clearly a case of people that shouldn't be driving.

[4X4]

Originally Posted by Dion

I know people who have been distracted while looking for an FM station or a song on a CD and have eased up the pressure on their brakes, with out knowing, and have hit the rear end of a vehicle. It's not a case of someone who should not be driving but rather a person who should have all their focus on the vehicle they are driving.

No, that's a case of a complete struggler being an idiot. If you can not handle keeping your foot on the brake at a light, regardless if you're reading a text, changing the station, or scratching your balls, then you have no business driving at all. These people that you "know" should have their licenses revoked.

Just because some people are complete failures at life doesn't mean that other people can't handle holding their foot in one place while doing something with their hand. This is as stupid as pissing your bed while sleeping.

[Dion]

Originally Posted by 4X4

No, that's a case of a complete struggler being an idiot. If you can not handle keeping your foot on the brake at a light, regardless if you're reading a text, changing the station, or scratching your balls, then you have no business driving at all. These people that you "know" should have their licenses revoked.

Just because some people are complete failures at life doesn't mean that other people can't handle holding their foot in one place while doing something with their hand. This is as stupid as pissing your bed while sleeping.

People do all sorts of things to cause accidents. Should we ban all of them and call them complete failures in life for an accident they caused?

[4X4]

Originally Posted by Dion

People do all sorts of things to cause accidents. Should we ban all of them and call them complete failures in life for an accident they caused?

No, just the ridiculously incompetent people that inadvertantly let their foot off the brake while changing the station at a fricken red light.

[theg69]

Man, must be nice to be so crazy popular that you can't make it through a car ride without checking your goddamn phone....

I admit that I used to always text and check my phone at lights before the law was passed, but since it was passed, I have stopped completely.

I realize that I am not so important that I need to check everything right away, and that all texts can wait that extra 10-15 min before I arrive at my destination and check my phone.

What I also have realized is that there are things at a traffic light that should demand the full attention of drivers, granted they aren't as serious as if you were distracted while actually driving, but important nonetheless.

First off, emergency vehicles typically only turn on their lights first and only their sirens when all the distracted people don't realize that there is one behind them.
And secondly, I have seen accidents averted by people moving forward in winter when the person behind them couldn't stop in time.

As a result, I keep my eyes on the road and on my rear view mirror when at a traffic light, not my phone, not my radio, etc.... I only sincerely hope that every driver would do the same.

[Swarly]

Originally Posted by theg69

Man, must be nice to be so crazy popular that you can't make it through a car ride without checking your goddamn phone....

I admit that I used to always text and check my phone at lights before the law was passed, but since it was passed, I have stopped completely.

I realize that I am not so important that I need to check everything right away, and that all texts can wait that extra 10-15 min before I arrive at my destination and check my phone.

What I also have realized is that there are things at a traffic light that should demand the full attention of drivers, granted they aren't as serious as if you were distracted while actually driving, but important nonetheless.

First off, emergency vehicles typically only turn on their lights first and only their sirens when all the distracted people don't realize that there is one behind them.
And secondly, I have seen accidents averted by people moving forward in winter when the person behind them couldn't stop in time.

As a result, I keep my eyes on the road and on my rear view mirror when at a traffic light, not my phone, not my radio, etc.... I only sincerely hope that every driver would do the same.

can i wait 10-15 mins without checking? yes of course I'm not a phone addict or something, but i'm sitting there bored and have the brain capacity to not remove my foot from the brake, so I might as well have a look.

emergency vehicles are equipped with sirens like you said so no worries. and like I have said before, not that difficult to scan a text and still be aware of your surroundings enough to see flashing lights.

if me moving a foot forward to the next guys bumper will prevent an accident in winter (I put winter tires on my car not claim that all seasons are just as good..... I only sincerely hope that every driver would do the same.) then its not that bad of an accident anyway and I will gladly accept the risk of someones insurance paying to fix my bumper. If me moving forward a foot would not have prevented the accident anyway the best thing I could do is go limp, so great, not seeing it coming is the best thing to do.

[Thor]

Originally Posted by Shawnski

Hypothetical situation.

You are stopped at a red light with a crosswalk right in front of you. You look down to check your phone but don't notice someone tripped/fell in front of you, or dropped something and is reaching under your car to pick it up.

Light turns green....

Driving up from San Fransisco to Vancouver, I was at a light that was below a hill, very risky light in my opinion since people unfamiliar with this road can be surprised by the sudden light in this hilly, windy road area in Oregon.

As I was stopped at this light, I was worried about this hill behind me since people are driving 80-100km in this area, and thankfully I was looking because a big ford truck comes barreling down the road towards the light at around probably 100km, when he realizes a light is ahead he slams on the breaks but I immediately checked the intersection and gunned it and drove off the road, so the truck ended up about half way through the intersection and had I not been paying attention he would have slammed into my car, probably injuring me and my father quite badly.

Because you are stopped at an intersection does not mean its time to just ignore your surroundings, accidents happen while your driving and often the most common accident is a distracted driver behind you hitting you while you are stopped at an intersection, stopped for a driver ahead of you who is turning, etc...

Nothing is that pressing in your life that you should be on your phone while you are in your car, if it is, pull over and take care of it, quit making excuses to find a reason to ignore your role as a driver to be aware of your surroundings and be an active participant in everyone's safety on the road..

[Burninator]

Originally Posted by Swarly

Can we please stop with all the anecdotal evidence of "I saw x do y, they were texting. texting is bad"

Well it's pretty obvious that texting was causing his bad driving. A bunch of you are claiming that texting at a red light isn't a big deal and you aren't backing up traffic. Well maybe you are and maybe you aren't. I don't know, I am not driving behind you. But lots of people are bad it.

This is just my opinion and I can't back this up and no one has to respond but I don't believe most people when they say they only text while stopped a red light. Too easy to finish off a text while moving off the line, not see the green right away, read the response while driving etc. I bet if I would have talked to that dude in the truck he would say he only texts while stopped a red light too.

[undercoverbrother]

Originally Posted by Swarly

Can we please stop with all the anecdotal evidence of "I saw x do y, they were texting. texting is bad"

As long as both side of the argument agree to stop with anecdotal evidence..........

[Jimmy Stang]

Originally Posted by Burninator

This is just my opinion and I can't back this up and no one has to respond but I don't believe most people when they say they only text while stopped a red light. Too easy to finish off a text while moving off the line, not see the green right away, read the response while driving etc. I bet if I would have talked to that dude in the truck he would say he only texts while stopped a red light too.

True, but a lot of this argument has turned into equating someone who even glances at a text while fully stopped at a red light with being reckless.

"Can you pick up some milk?"

I'm sure that we're all capable of reading that while stopped at a red light without causing or becoming the victim of anything. And honestly, how much time and concentration did it take? I have had farts that have required more of both. No need to reply until you're standing in line at the checkout, or you could just walk into the house with a jug of milk to your wife's adoration. Nobody dies, nobody is delayed at the green light (which is still red for another 58 seconds), and nobody has to go out again once they get home because they were too busy concentrating on holding their foot on the brake pedal for a minute or two.

[Knalus]

Glancing at the text "I'm in front of the Drug Store" at a red light could keep you from being a rubbernecking dangerous driver trying hard to find the person you are trying to pick up. Instead of peering down every side street, trying to find the person you are looking for, and inadvertently slamming into a parked car, you now know where to look and are a much more attentive driver.


I mean, if we are talking about hypotheticals, this is a much more likely scenario than some kid trying to fish their phone out from underneath - and in front - of your car.

[troutman]

Distracted driving now the 2nd leading cause of car crash deaths in B.C.


http://globalnews.ca/news/1544129/di...deaths-in-b-c/

On average, 88 people are killed in B.C. each year due to driver distractions.

The B.C. Association of Chiefs say you are four times more likely to crash if you are on your phone while driving.

Meanwhile ICBC says that rear-end crashes are on the rise by 14 per cent since 2009 and says the main factor in those crashes is distracted driving.