Highway driving abroad vs driving in Oz
I love driving, especially outside Australia which must boast some of the world’s most moronic drivers. Any opportunity to get behind the wheel beyond our shores reminds me what a miserable country this is for a petrolhead like me. (Hmmm, quick aside – will we have ‘voltheads’ in the future?). Having driven in many countries, we seem to have acquired a unique breed of driver – someone who is both aggressive and slow. A weird combination I haven’t really encountered anywhere else.
I recently returned from driving in both Canada and the USA and, compared to here, the experience was a pleasant surprise. Regardless of the posted limits which seemed to follow no logic whatsoever, most drivers drove at the speed they felt comfortable with, without feeling the need to obstruct anyone else.
I’d estimate the quicker cars were travelling at 120 – 140 km/h, and the majority went along at about 100- 115 km/h and slower traffic stayed in the far right (our left lane) and stayed out of the way. I didn’t see evidence of the “you aren’t going to overtake me” mentality that pervades in Australia. Nor did I see anyone greatly exceeding the posted limits.
Very few cars obstructed faster traffic and in consequence, there was little sign of tailgating, or bunching, because everyone seemed to accept they should just let everyone else travel at their chosen speed, without trying to baulk them, Australian-style. (I have pretty much had the same positive experience in this regard all over Europe too).
As a result, even though I was driving on a different side of the road, in a crappy rental Camry, dealing with different road rules and, at times, heavy rain, I felt much safer driving abroad than I have ever have done in Australia.
Then I arrived home…
What a contrast to appalling driving I encountered as soon as I returned home. On the highway back to the Blue Mountains, it was obvious that everyone was so worried about being nabbed for speeding, they mostly travelled in packs about 10 km/h below and above the posted limit (so about 75km/h – 88 km/h) and were unconcerned about what lane they are travelling in. Despite our ‘keep left unless overtaking’ signs, the majority of them seem to think it’s fine to drive all day in the right lane, usually alongside another moron doing the same speed in the lane to their left.
We need more of those Keep Left Unless Overtaking signs, and more cops pulling over these clueless fools who don’t seem to know what those signs mean. Sadly, ‘the speeding a dangerous ‘mentality is so entrenched in the minds of most drivers, they think they’re safe drivers because they are driving at, or close to the speed limit. Just concentrate on the speedo, not the road.
And the Highway Patrol?
Consequently, wherever you go, there are moving roadblocks, driving nose to tail and seemingly unnoticed by the highway patrols who are too busy looking at their radar guns, raising revenue for the state. And, let’s be honest, it’s much easier for the Highway Patrol to be sitting there clocking up more speeding fines and revenue than to monitor poor driving behaviour. I’m sure it must happen occasionally, but I’ve yet to see it in NSW.
How to avoid the mobile roadblocks
I’ve tried a few ways to avoid being stuck behind these mobile roadblocks and none of them really works. If you wait patiently for the driver sitting in the right lane (as opposed to overtaking) you can be sure the driver behind will be driving too close and behave like I’m the cause of the problem.
Often, the driver blocking the right lane is oblivious to the queue behind, or perhaps thinks they are making the roads safer by slowing everyone else down – a view I’ve read and heard many times.
I have tried moving over to the left lane but this just means there’s a rush of cars anxious to queue up behind the right lane stalwart, sitting ever closer, with me now stuck in I end up in another dangerous queue in one of the left lanes.
I’ve tried driving well under the speed limit in the far left lane to let the moving roadblock disperse and, in no time, there will be another moron tailgating me. Sometimes I despair.
It’s not surprising that more and more drivers decide to undertake as a last resort. It shouldn’t be necessary, but it’s probably a lot safer than joining the queue sitting nose to tail at the same speed. In fact, it is quite legal to undertake in other countries and, from what I observe, it seems to work fine and it saves a lot of frustration. It’s unimaginable that such a sensible idea would ever become legal in Australia.
The demon speed – the cause of most accidents, apparently!
In truth, I hardly ever see anyone travelling at speeds way above the posted speed limit on our roads. While Highway Patrol cars are hiding somewhere along the road, salivating at the thought of catching someone exceeding the limit, I’m sure the majority of so-called ‘speeding ‘drivers are doing maybe 10 to 15 km/h over the limit.
Meanwhile, the really dangerous driving seems to be totally ignored as the mindless majority drive at the same speeds a few kilometres just a few metres apart.
Maybe this is the result of idiotic motoring organisations and safety ‘expert’ research funded by the Government. They have convinced Australian drivers that speed is the root of all motoring evil and the cause of most traffic accidents and death on the roads.
I’d love to see the ‘proof’ behind these simplistic claims. So it’s not ill-attention, carelessness, stupidity, fatigue, driving too close, or any of the other good reasons people crash into each other. No, let’s just keep it simple, let’s just blame the usual suspects: drink, drugs and speed.
Even 2 km/h over is dangerous!
“Even 1 to 2 km/h over the limit is likely to cause an accident”. So said another ‘expert’ in an article about highway speeding the other day. I’m sure he actually believes what he says.
Now, I don’t know about you, but I feel much safer travelling well away from the little packs huddled together on the highway. Ideally, I prefer to be on my own with no one close behind or in front and travelling at a speed that seems safe for the conditions. A speed that might be faster than 1 to 2 km/h over the limit, maybe occasionally closer to 10 km/h or so over in the dry and slower and leaving a much larger gap when it’s wet. It’s called driving to the conditions.
Such a radical concept is, of course, totally out of step with current Australian road safety group thinking. Do they actually drive, I wonder?
The cure for stupidity
What to do about this? Well, my observations suggest that many motorists simply seem to be oblivious to the ‘keep left’ road laws on roads with posted limits of 80 km/h or more. Certainly, some self-righteous individuals seem to think it’s their divine right to obstruct everyone who might wish to overtake them. However, the majority seem to just be lazily unaware they might be causing a potentially deadly roadblock.
Time and time again, I see a potentially deadly situation develop. One minute the traffic is flowing normally, then someone decides to drive alongside the car in the next lane. Without attempting to overtake. In seconds, two cars become twenty, and it becomes a close, fast-moving group of frustrated, angry motorists.
Eventually, someone undertakes, or the overtaking lane hog actually moves over, and with luck, everyone can continue driving without incident. Needless to say, if an accident does occur, the ‘experts’ will pronounce excessive speed as the cause.
How about education rather than threats?
It’s all so unnecessary. Some simple road education messages would save more lives than the mindless, repetitive, ‘speed kills’ drivel heard in most road ‘safety’ commercials. Interestingly, my wife still remembers the road safety messages she saw on TV in Canada when she was at school. The one that really sticks in her mind is about the 3-second gap rule. People do listen if the message has the right cut-through. The ‘Don’t Be A Tosser’ anti-litter campaign is a good example.
There is little evidence of motorists driving responsibly on the road. I think it’s time to see some engaging messages that create more awareness about these common problems. Like, how you should ONLY occupy the overtaking lane if overtaking. Or, the importance of allowing a SAFE ( 3 second or more) gap when travelling on the highway at all times. And, doubling that gap when it’s raining. Easy messages that could make a real difference.
Or, simply promote courtesy on the roads. When the Olympics were held in Sydney, the good mood that pervaded on the road saw the number of accidents go down. I know road courtesy campaigns have proved successful in France in the past, why not here?
I have worked in advertising for decades and know that intelligent, informative messages do work. The problem is, they don’t appeal to the self-righteous Government marketing department types. No, the ‘War on Speeding,’ like the ‘War on Drugs’ will continue, with a similar lack of success. Politicians love to say they are getting tough on something or other, rather than actually try to find ways to solve the issues.
Will anything change?
Well, I won’t hold my breath. It’s a long time since I heard any intelligent comment about how to improve road driving behaviour in Australia. The current mindset insists on threatening drivers with hellfire and damnation if they break the law, rather than looking at ways to educate them. This could easily happen with some simple educational ideas. The process might make driving on our roads far more pleasant and much safer.
End of rant.
