Most drivers agree that courtesy is
lacking on our roadways -- whether between operators of
cars, cars and pedestrians or bicycles, between motorcycles
and cars, or trucks and cars. I've often wondered whether
the relative anonymity we have when driving leads us to
behave in ways we'd never consider if we were meeting another
person face to face.
But
courtesy is important -- not only in terms of interpersonal
conflicts with other drivers and the problems those cause,
but also in terms of keeping traffic moving. Here's an example:
you're on a freeway, with three lanes of traffic that are
narrowing to two lanes just ahead. Do you encounter drivers
who stay as close as they can to the rear bumper of the
vehicle ahead, so the folks in the right lane cannot merge?
Have you done the same thing to others? I know there are
times when my little green attitude "devil" takes
over. The result is a sure bottleneck and backed-up traffic.
Yet if even one driver allows someone to merge in front
of them, it often sets the example for others to follow
-- and traffic keeps flowing. Is there some big harm in
letting someone merge into your lane in front of you? The
only real cost is a split second of driving time -- and
you lose more than that if traffic chokes to a stop.
It's important to be courteous -- but
extending courtesy to others must be done with conscious
thought for unintended consequences. Here's a real world
example: You are sitting in traffic, waiting for a signal
light. You are in the middle of three lanes. A vehicle on
your right wants to cut across traffic from a driveway and
make a turn into traffic going the opposite direction as
you. The driver in the right lane stops and leaves room
for them to come across -- and you do the same, waving the
person across in front of you. YOUR thought in waving them
across your lane is to let them know YOU will allow them
to cross in front of you, but in their mind, you are telling
them it is safe to cross. They do not see another vehicle
coming down the left lane at 45 mph -- and perhaps that
driver doesn't see them either -- since they are hidden
from view by your vehicle and the other traffic.
In the past fifteen years, I have seen
two serious collisions happen EXACTLY this way (and one
near miss). In one of them, I was driving the vehicle that
was oncoming in the lane and got hit by the crossing traffic
(and yes, I should have seen it coming). The other occurred
three cars in front of me when others motioned a crossing
driver through traffic. The near miss was a high school
boy, jaywalking between cars instead of using the crosswalk
at the intersection nearby, and a motorist stopped short
and waved him across -- where he was almost hit by another
vehicle flying down the turn lane approaching the intersection.
He was so shaken he collapsed on the sidewalk. Another example
is when a driver unnecessarily and abruptly stops for a
jaywalker or an animal, and forces someone following behind
(who isn't expecting the sudden stop) to take dangerous
evasive action.
When being courteous, think about the
big picture, and make sure that what you do doesn't contribute
to a dangerous situation for the other guy.
Keep the shiny side up!
<Rule
41: Share the Road With Bicyclists
Rule 43: Don't Try To Make Up Time
When You're Late!>
