The 400 Project

I drive over an hour every day for my commute. Others drive double that, and a few spend their entire day driving. We all have to drive for the most part especially if you live outside a decent sized city, or if local transit just doesn’t cut it. Why then, does it seem like everybody is out to get each other? Like it’s all a big race down the highway to end up at the same traffic light? Weaving through traffic, cutting each other off, getting frustrated – it doesn’t need to be this way. There are simple practices that we can do to keep the roads flowing smoothly and the aggression and heart rate down. The biggest problem is lack of awareness and understanding that these little bad habits people have add up. A lot of these subjects I’ll bring up are going to be obvious for many of you, but I know for a fact there are people who don’t know these things. So spread the word, let’s make roads better together.

Be Seen, Be Courteous

You’re driving to the mall and the weather is not on your side. It’s raining hard and the water coming off the tires of the vehicles ahead of you is misting the air. It’s midday yet visibility is rather poor. If only every car would automatically activate their lights at times like this as it’s hard to see cars a few meters in front of you.

Being mindful of others driving on the highway is a simple task. Yet so many of us are oblivious to the fact we are sharing the road. White knuckled snowy drives would be less hectic if you’d just remember to turn your lights on when visibility is low. I’d rather not discover a car is in front of me when they are hard on the brakes. I’d like to know beforehand, and I’m sure you’d appreciate not being rear-ended either. Another simple task like brushing your car off completely (roofs too!) goes rather far. Flying debris on the highway isn’t cool; large sheets of ice coming off at over 100km isn’t either!

I make sure to brush off my entire vehicle before attempting a winter drive. It gives the car time for it to warm up, but I’d also think it’s a sense of pride as well. Even if you hate the car you drive, think of what it does for you: it gets you to work, lets you discover new places, and gives you something to whine about when you empty your pockets at the gas station. When I brush the snow off my car I even make sure to clean off the licenses plates. I’d rather not cause an inconvenience to a police officer’s day or give them a reason to pull me over.

Problem:

Low visibility caused by drivers not turning their lights on. As well as unnecessary debris due to laziness. 

Solution:

Turn your lights on in bad weather conditions or at dusk. Clean snow and ice off your car before setting out.