WEST IS BEST
Jim Kenzie on why we should learn from the rules of the road in B.C.,
Most of us living in the Centre of the Known Universe (CotKU) tend to think our westernmost province is a land of tree huggers.
True, Vancouver has had pretty much an anti-car stance for some time. Its lack of a modern road infrastructure has made traffic there a nightmare, which of course seems to lead to more, not less, pollution.
That said, a recent multi-event tour of our Wet Coast provided me with an opportunity to evaluate some of the province’s remarkably advanced traffic policies, which Ontario would be well-advised to adopt.
As I have said before, B.C.’s Minister of Transportation Todd Stone is my new hero. He raised speed limits on many of B.C.’s rural freeways, notably the Coquihalla Highway between Hope and Kamloops, from 110 to 120 km/h, and many of B.C.’s two lane roads have limits of 90 km/h instead of 80.
Predictably — predictably if you really understand how speed limits work — it has not resulted in carnage. It’s too early for a full statistical analysis, but preliminary data suggest people are not in fact driving any faster and the roads may actually be safer than before.
Incidentally, Saskatchewan has also figured this out. Not sure what’s taking Ontario so long.
When Minister Stone was preparing to raise these limits, he conducted extensive public hearings. The next most discussed topic in these hearings was the dreaded left-lane bandit, people who will not drive in the right lane, despite the fact that it is (a) polite, (b) safer, and (c) unquestionably the law. (For Ontario, see Ontario Highway Traffic Act, Section 147 (1). In B.C., it’s Section 150. All provincial legislation I’ve checked has similar wording somewhere.)
So you see signs like the one shown above, which remind drivers to keep right. Note that it does not say anything about “slower traffic keep right.” Nobody — well, few people — want to be thought of as “slow.” It implies ALL traffic should keep right, which is also what the law demands.
I don’t know how vigorously B.C. enforces this law. And they don’t always get the lane markings right — sometimes it is the right lane which disappears, which of course is silly. The right lane is the lane the law says you must drive in. How can it ever disappear?
You always add a passing lane to the left. If there is no more passing lane, then you must subtract that lane from the left. Simple. But at least B.C. is making the effort.
B.C. also has another regulation posted on their mountain roads. As in California, if you are holding up more than five other vehicles, you are obliged to use one of the frequent “pull outs” to allow them to pass.
This one is not always obeyed, but in my experience, it’s not too bad.
I have previously suggested that if a jurisdiction is going to use HOV (High-Occupancy Vehicle) lanes — and they shouldn’t because they too are stupid — then at least they should so-designate the right lane, not the left.
Because despite the above-mentioned law, the rightmost lane — the “Jim-only” lane (full disclosure — I shamelessly stole that terminology from my friend Jeff . . .) is almost always empty.
If we were to insist that HOV users get in that lane, it would better utilize the lanes your taxes have already paid for.
Also, HOV users tend to be slower, so getting them into the right lane improves traffic flow in two ways.
So B.C. not only has some of the best driving roads in — well frankly, the world. But B.C. also has some of the most enlightened traffic regulations you’ll find on this continent.
Other provinces — most notably, our own — please copy. Freelance writer Jim Kenzie is chief auto reviewer for Toronto Star Wheels. To reach him, email wheels@thestar.ca and put his name in the subject line.