Zero crash month - a lofty goal if ever there was one. ICBC, in an effort to save both dollars and lives, has given that designation to the month of October.
This has been a distressing year on the Coast. Both the frequency and severity of accidents have had an enormous impact on many in our community.
Sad to say, there are still many drivers out there who just don't get it. They don't realize that the high-performance, steel-encased machines they're sitting in have the power to kill or seriously harm someone.
In the past two days, I've almost been in three accidents. And none of them, I might add, involved any vehicle with a new driver symbol displayed.
In the first instance, workers who ought to know a lot better turned left directly in front of our van. Without hard braking, I would have T-boned their vehicle. We don't know if they were late for work or simply not paying any attention - either way it was scary.
The next almost accident happened right after the first. A pickup truck going through the intersection at Pratt Road and Highway 101 was flashing the left turn signal. Fortunately we waited as the truck went completely through the intersection, only to turn several metres later. While I realize it's a good thing to give as much warning of a turn as possible, in this case it could have been dangerous.
The final incident happened later at the same intersection. A steely-haired gent with a full complement of passengers in his red van was completely engrossed in the road work being done on the corner. He was so busy going slowly and talking to his passengers (complete with the appropriate broad hand gestures) that he neglected to watch the traffic signal. And consequently he sailed, in slow motion, right through a red light. I honestly don't think he even realized there were traffic lights there.
The worst part of the events is that they aren't unusual. This kind of driving goes on day after day on the Coast. We are a small town community where it's still permissible to cross two double lines to get that perfect parking spot in front of the convenience store. God forbid we walk a block to pick up our lottery tickets or junk food.
We're a community where many of us learned to drive in the city where aggressiveness is the name of the game. We're drivers who so feel the need for bumper companionship that we tailgate even when there are only two cars on the entire stretch of highway.
We need to be a community that respects one another other. No accidents, no lives lost, no costly repairs. We need to be a community fixated on zero crashes - not just for one month of the year, but always.
