Modified pickups are too dangerous

Re: “Sarah Beckett honoured on second anniversary of her death,” April 6.

Wouldn’t it be great if instead of a memorial to a police officer who died in a traffic crash we had a measurable improvement in road safety in B.C.?

I would have hoped by now traffic police, ICBC and/or lawmakers would have taken steps to require that large, raised pickup trucks with high bumpers be brought back into line with national factory safety standards.

These vehicles, usually driven by a younger, faster or more aggressive demographic, make any accident far worse for the occupants of a passenger car.

Modified hard-steel bumpers get forced into passenger compartments, overriding side-impact beams, causing massive head and chest injuries. The results are similar for pedestrians, motorcyclists and cyclists, with severe head and chest injuries instead of survivable lower-limb injuries.

Working as a paramedic, I see the results. A minor accident with proper bumper height becomes serious or fatal with a raised bumper.

Why should someone’s selfishness in having a raised, modified, heavy vehicle put all other road users at risk?

Const. Sarah Beckett could have been any one of us or our loved ones, in any intersection. Will the police brass and politicians please take action?

Ken Mawdsely Victoria