Bikes, Electric bikes, electric skates, skateboards…..are BB8, Chopper, and Porgs next??!

 In the last 20 years, emerged a phletora of new vehicles on the roads, with new lines drawn, forcing drivers to asjust their focus on these new emergents. 

This is a tough adjustment. 

But doable. 

What is not acceptable are their illegal behaviors and actions- driving against traffic,  crossing through redlights, cruss crossing  lanes at rapid speed without signalling etc etc.

The proper authorities should put a stop to all these by writing more violation tickets.  

May the force be reawakened in doing the right thing. 

The free Orchestra on the road

 Yes it is truly free. 

But dangerous. 

Every now and then, we get a vehicle who purposely plays extremely loud music, or one with sudden heavy  bass and vibration.  Or a motorcycle that revs up its very loud engine for pure thrills.  Or a sports car that revs up its engibe to show off. 

It is time proper authorities put a stop to all these  dangerous activities.  These not only startle the average driver, but more importantly, the elderly or drivers with sensitive hearings, causing then to lose focus driving  

May the Conductor finally  silent that gypsy  Orchestra. 

My car is no Pinnochio - Lights or Mirrors needed !

It is quite rare to encounter one, but sometimes it does happen.

A road with no traffic lights, cars all parked up to the tilt on the right (or blocked one way or the other) and the only way to gain visibility of traffic coming from the right is to poke our car slightly into the traffic to gain visibility.

This is dangerous not just because your car can be hit,  it may also surprise  the other driver into drastic action.  

Traffic lights should be installed on those lanes or public mirrors should be smartly placed for visibility.

Your car should be a candy store. A Life Saver.

Staying awake to combat sleepiness while driving long distance - possibly to an important meeting, in which punctuality is perhaps instrumental- is not a pleasant experience.

Stack it up!

One must be preemptive!

Stack your car with a large variety:  cans of coffee, espresso, tea, pepsi, chocolates,  spicy chewing gums and sweets of all kinds. Chew away!

If all else fail, exit road, park in  a safe, well lit, big street and take a nap.

Remember to shut windows tight, except a sliver for ventilation, and hide all valuables before dozing off.

Be a Professional.

A Professional Chewer.

Should Driving consists of a game of Guess? Confusing sign placements, traffic lights.

 Driving requires substantial focus.

And the last thing we need is confusion.

One common observation on highways is  confusing placement of two similar

 "DO NOT ENTER. WRONG WAY"

signs on the entry area of the highways.   There is usually an entry lane and an exit lane on the same road.

The signs are meant for the exit lane.

The first sign is placed correctly to the left of the exit lane.

But alas!  the second sign is placed on the right side of the exit lane - which at first seems correct, BUT the entry lane of the highway happens to be on the right side of the second sign, thus sending a ambiguous signal to the driver to not enter the highway using the entry lane.

A quick way to correct this mistake is to remove the second sign since it is not necessary.

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Another confusing observation are traffic lights placed  a distance away at the convergence of 2 angled (around 45 degree apart)  converging roads.  At times, it is not clear which light is for which road - since one must be red and the other green for safety purpose.  And sometimes the 2 sets of light for the 2 roads are built into the same box, possibly increasing more confusion. 

The solution is to have separate traffic posts well  placed  directly in front of the stop zone, thus immediately visible to the driver.

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I recently encountered another situation that a traffic light is not placed in front of my car, but to the right side of the road. 

 Although that light is visible, it is still a dangerous placement. We are used to seeing the traffic light in front of us - that is how our eyes scan for those lights NATURALLY- thus one could overlook and not be aware of it if it is suddenly place to the right of the road ( not sure if this is legal DOT wise ).

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PACMAN on steroids - Going local instead of fast highways

I would never forget when Pinky went super fast on me.

When high speed pacman came out when i was a kid, it was quite exhilarating. But it became stupid and meaningless after a few rounds, so i quit playing the steroid version.

The Choice is always there to quit.

If you find the highway evolving into one that is too fast, with speedy or dangerous cars wooshing around,  to the extent it makes you uncomfortable, dont forget you always havde the option to exit and go local.  You do not have to conform to any dangerous situations.

Another common situation to go local is when sun is shining to bright directly at your face, not giving you any visibility.

And it is not just highways.  If you feel uncomfortable on any local roads, exit out and switch to another road.

PACMAN on steroids is not worth the risk.

To pee or not to pee? That is NOT the question.

 Mess or Civility?

How about Safety ?!

When choosing being civilized amid a toilet urgency- not much of a option here since making a mess in our pants is unpleasant and peeing on the roadside is uncivilized and unsightly-  one tend to drive quickly around, thus possibly forgoing driving safety behaviors, to find a nearby retail outlet or restaurant for a bathroom.

DONT !

Choose Safety.   

Choose Safety over mess or civility.

Always keep an empty drink bottle and container and toilet paper in your car for these situations.

Exit road, park safely, and just do it.  

Never a sweat. Never an iota of pressure.