Every driver has been held up by traffic at one time or another. On the West Shore, sitting in your vehicle and waiting is a fact of life.
But thereB次元官网网址檚 a big difference between being delayed on the Trans Canada Highway as youB次元官网网址檙e driving into town and having to wait for children leaving or getting to school to clear a crosswalk.
Outside Ruth King elementary in Langford, the schoolB次元官网网址檚 crossing guard is finding that the kids she tries to keep safe are being put in jeopardy on an almost daily basis, because some drivers travelling through the intersection of Goldstream Avenue and Jacklin Road donB次元官网网址檛 appear to have the same value for childrenB次元官网网址檚 safety.
This long-established school has seen development and traffic increase around it, but that doesnB次元官网网址檛 let drivers off the hook for observing the basic rules of the road.
We must be even more conscious of our surroundings in a school zone, especially if we happen to be driving at a time when children are arriving or heading home from school. DriversB次元官网网址� impatience, or the fact they might be behind schedule, does not trump the safety of pedestrians. Ever.
One of the facts about driving is that peopleB次元官网网址檚 bad habits donB次元官网网址檛 change overnight. It usually takes something serious to happen, like a crash, maybe a heavy fine or in the worst case, hitting a pedestrian or cyclist B次元官网网址� some life-changing incident B次元官网网址� to force us to look at how we operate when we get behind the wheel.
The lack of motivation to change our behaviours on the roads stems from an absence of consequences. A big part of that is the lack of visible police enforcement. But the decision to change has to come from within, and police can only do so much in that regard.
Linda, the beloved crossing guard at Ruth King, is at her witB次元官网网址檚 end these days because of drivers who ignore pedestrian safety. She has indicated this will be her last school year in the job, because she doesnB次元官网网址檛 want something bad to happen on her watch.
Neither do we. Giving more thought to the safety of others when weB次元官网网址檙e driving can never be a bad thing.
