Blame the Car…

Only a numskull politician could possibly suggest that cars are to blame for what their idiot drivers do. Yet, that seems to be the message Quebec’s (questionably) revered Minister of Transport, Guy Chevrette, has charged.

At a recently held media conference, Chevrette accused auto manufacturers for creating a “highway hazard” by building increasingly powerful engines in cars. Based on vague research by Quebec’s Auto Insurance Board suggesting “speed” has become an increasing factor in highway road deaths, the minister called on the federal government to regulate car engines. “We’re putting pressure on the federal government, which has jurisdiction over the matter,” says Chevrette.

One could argue that Chevrette has a point. If all cars were limited to say, a 60cc engine, and putted along at maximum 40 kilometers per hour, then the number of deaths resulting from collisions would no doubt drop. But then, a head-on between two vehicles traveling at 40 kilometers per hour would mean a combined impact of 80 kilometers per hour – perhaps too high for Chevrette’s comfort? Also, perhaps we should ban air travel, as statistically, the number of people flying has risen and so has the number of air fatalities. Maybe, to best serve the grannies like Chevrette, the federal government should outlaw all motorized transportation and go back to horse-drawn carriages.

What political interventionist types such as Chevrette fail to comprehend is that the fault behind road accidents and deaths has less to do with the efficiency or power of the vehicle, but rather the absent-minded creatures sitting behind the wheel. This comes down to adequate driving skills, and a system that should ensure that licensed motorists are indeed capable of managing the type of vehicles they drive. Driver licensing, and therefore the “quality of drivers” on the road, is a provincial matter, and this is where Chevrette should concentrate his efforts.

Notably, the number of highway deaths in Germany, which applies very generous limits on speed, and mostly unlimited speeds on autobahns, has one of the lowest road fatality rates in the world. On the other hand, Canada and the U.S., which maintain extremely low road speed limits, number among the highest fatalities. Could this be due the poor standard of driver on our roads? I hold the view that absent-minded driving has more to do with the high rate of road fatalities in Canada. Again, this is a reflection on the provincial driver licensing authorities, with many of the driver programs focused on “safety procedures” rather than efficient and aware driving skills. Another factor is that anyone licensed to drive a vehicle classed as non-commercial can get behind the wheel of a hulking SUV or mini-van after passing a licensing test driving say, a Toyota Echo. Should vehicles such as SUVs – which are reported to be at the top of the list of road accidents – be classed separately for licensing requirements?

This brings me to another one of my “pet hates” – cell phones whilst driving. New York State recently passed legislation which will ban the use of hand-held cell phones by drivers by the beginning of November this year. Another 40 U.S. states are considering similar action, while several provinces in Canada are also believed to be reviewing cell phone bans.

Yet again, I have to point out that, while cell phones may/or not contribute to road fatalities, the issue at stake is the quality of the driver using the equipment. While a study compiled by the Insurance Corporation of British Columbia (ICBC) suggests the use of hand-held cell phones by drivers has exasperated the number of road deaths, there is actually very little solid research linking cell phones to road accidents, observes The Economist (June 30 – July 6 2001 issue). A report issued by the American Automobile Association (AAA) identifies 284,000 crashes resulting from distracted driving, of which only 1.5% relate to the use of cell phones, The Economist article notes.

Perhaps banning hand-held cell phones whilst driving is not the solution. Maybe licensing tests should be applied, for instance, people incapable of tying shoe-laces and having a conversation at the same time, should be banned from the use of cell phones behind the wheel – hand-held or not (unfortunately, this would probably mean that most drivers currently on the road would not qualify).

Although there is not much research linking cell phones to distracted driving, I do feel the need to relate a recent personal experience. During one of my regular trips to/from the office along Sheppard Avenue in Toronto, I noticed rather erratic motions of the SUV traveling in front of me. I cautiously held back, not sure what the situation was, particularly as the SUV blocked my frontal vision and hogged the road like a tank. Within a second, the SUV mounted the side curb with both a front and rear wheel, bucked and swerved violently, at which point it appeared to be at a precarious point of rolling, but then slipped back onto the road and continued with its journey.

At this stage, I used my “powerfully-motored” car to overtake this hazard and get the hell out of there before becoming an “accidental fatality”. On passing the SUV, I glanced at the driver and saw a woman who could barely see above the steering wheel engaged in conversation on a cell phone – her hands flying in the air accentuating conversational highlights. Her close experience seemed to have had no noticeable impact – but then perhaps this was a regular driving experience for her. My opinion, don’t blame the car, blame the idiots driving them. As The Economist article points out, “talking with a headset or a speaker-phone will be permitted [under the New York State cell phone ban]. So will arguing with passengers on the backseat while changing the radio station, adjusting the climate controls, applying lipstick, having a shave or munching a hamburger.”