I'm not the most experienced driver, it's true but even I am aware of some basic fundamentals that some drivers in the area seem to have forgotten.
On Friday night, I was driving home from a friend's place near Glendon around midnight. There was thick fog that blocked just about everything. I couldn't see the road signs, I couldn't see the shoulders of the road and anything beyond that was lost in the fog.
I don't have much experience with fog like that but I knew enough to drive slowly – but not too slowly – and to keep a careful watch for headlights in the other lane, behind me and in front of me. If there was traffic, I knew I wouldn't see it until it was practically beside me.
I was going about 80 km/h, a nice compromise, since it was so foggy, I wanted to slow down to a crawl but knew that would pose a danger as well.
I couldn't quite believe it when the driver came speeding up behind me, passed me without even pausing, ignoring the solid yellow line and disappearing seconds later in the fog.
I was even more horrified when it happened twice more before I reached Bonnyville.
Maybe those drivers have never lost a loved one to reckless driving. Maybe they've never sat in front of their computers and struggled to find the right words to write an article about those who have. Maybe they think arriving a few minutes earlier is worth the risk.
Maybe if they slowed down, they'd think about how if they lost that bet, someone would most likely end up dead. It's not something I'm willing to risk.
Saturday, I was driving home from Cold Lake. Right outside the city, I got stuck behind a car going 90 km/h. I was running a bit late and grew a little irritated, I'll admit. By the time the car turned off the road a few minutes later, there were six or seven cars lined up behind it, all growing progressively more frustrated.
I guess maybe the driver who tried to pass me in the turning lane seconds later hasn't noticed all the crosses and wreaths alongside the highway marking all the places people have died, quite a few of them from unsafe passing.
When the turning lane ran out before he could get up the speed he needed to pass me, I guess it only made sense to jerk into on coming traffic, once again crossing a solid yellow line, to pass me as we came to the blind curve that drops down to the bridge over the river.
Maybe being in such a hurry means you don't even notice the crosses and the flowers alongside the road.
It's no excuse for ignoring the orange signs warning drivers about the 4-H Highway Clean-up, though, or the clusters of volunteers alongside the highway picking up litter.
If slowing down for someone obeying the speed limit isn't a good enough reason, slowing down to keep volunteers (many of them children) safe should be.
Maybe getting to your destination a little sooner is worth the risk to you but those you're putting in harm's way don't get to make that choice. It isn't fair to make it for them.
