Vince LeBlanc of the BC Highway Patrol in Nelson is raising concerns about the increasing number of serious and fatal crashes in the area, crediting many to aggressive driving and a lack of patience on the roads.
“It’s the ones that are overdriving the road that are causing the difficulty. Yes, there are lots of windy corners, hills, and ups and downs, but you have brakes, an accelerator, and a steering wheel to handle that. You need to have more patience when you’re in the driver’s seat, and that’s what is leading to all these incidents.” said LeBlanc.
His message comes after the West Kootenay area saw another two serious vehicle collisions this week, one of which resulted in the death of a 50-year-old motorcyclist on Highway 3A between Creston and Crawford Bay.
The area has seen a significant increase in severe motor vehicle collisions since the beginning of May, several of which have resulted in fatalities. LeBlanc said aggressive driving was at fault for most of the incidents.
“We’re rolling in with lots of fatalities and those are all related to distracted driving, impaired driving, and above all, aggressive driving,” he said.
“Aggressive driving has a huge definition. It’s speeding, passing on double solids, or just passing because you don’t want to be behind someone doing the speed limit. Those are the reasons people are dying on our highways, and people need to smarten up and drive with a little bit more common sense.”
When travelling at a speed of 100 km/h, motorists move about 27 metres per second.
Leblanc says at that rate of speed, it can take just one second to collide into the back of another vehicle if something goes wrong, which is why it’s important to keep at least a 100-metre separation on the highways.
“Go a little bit slower and create a giant safety pocket between you and the vehicle ahead of you. You’re more likely to get to your destination safely.”
Collisions happen fast and they can happen to anyone. Leblanc says having the mentality that it won’t happen to you is wrong, as it’s the responsibility of everyone to keep the roads safe.
“Every time you get in your vehicle and you drive somewhere, you’re playing Russian Roulette. It could happen at any time, to anybody. It may not be your driving, it could be somebody else’s driving. It’s everyone’s responsibility. We’re not going to be able to reduce our fatalities unless we get everybody on board and drive a little bit better and be more responsible.”
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