Re. Sept. 12 letter from Bonnie Machuk, headlined Traffic lights don’t give permission to run people down:
I strongly agree with the letter writer.
I owned a driving school in Antigonish, N.S., for 20 years and I was the biggest pain in the neck as far as highway safety goes.
I retired and moved out here to Alberta. I have a question for the Alberta government: is the safety of the highway users not important to you at all?
At the lights, as a pedestrian, when crossing with the green light make sure the driver turning in your lane is checking their shoulder. That is the hardest thing to teach new drivers, and when you tell parents to practise this with their new drivers some will say, “What is that?”
If the driver doesn’t look at you, they don’t know that you are there.
When crossing, first you get a green walk sign, then you get a flashing sign that I guess here it means run.
There should be a little more time before the green light changes to give slower pedestrians time to cross.
As a driver, always look around before entering an intersection. As a pedestrian, don’t step into the crosswalk assuming the driver sees you.
What if the driver is drunk? And the driver may not be able to see through their windshield, or what is left of it.
Highway safety is the responsibility of drivers, but it is also the responsibility of those in charge of the highway system.
By the way, what’s up with the gravel on the paved roads? That’s another question for the government.
Allen McKay
Blackfalds