SGI's Traffic Safety Spotlight for January is focused on staying alert on the roads to avoid collisions.
With the new year comes the urgency to get out of holiday mode and back into the flow of reality. While reality is still setting in for some, safe driving practices are too important not to be used year-round to avoid the harsher reality that goes along with motor vehicle collisions.
Behaviours that regularly contribute to collisions in Saskatchewan include speeding, following too closely, lack of care executing turns, use of cellphones, and failure to adjust driving to road conditions. This means when drivers fail to follow the basic rules of the road, the risk of a collision increases significantly.
"Collisions are dangerous, and our number one priority is keeping everyone safe on the roads," said JP Cullen, Chief Operating Officer of the Auto Fund. "There’s also a financial cost to collisions, and no one wants to deal with the added expense of a collision, especially right after the holidays."
For most, those costs aren't worth it, especially when lives are the most valuable element of the risk assessment.
Not only would someone responsible for a vehicle collision have to pay a deductible and deal with demerit points, likely reduced insurance discounts, or incurred financial penalties, but the likelihood of causing a collision can also result in traffic offense tickets. Then there's the added hassle and potential added cost of being without a vehicle if yours is in the shop for repairs or gets written off entirely.
You can avoid collisions by giving your full attention to your driving. This means eliminating all distractions and making sure passengers know your focus needs to stay on getting everyone to their destination safely.
Since nearly half of all collisions occur at intersections, be a defensive driver when approaching and proceeding through intersections, by scanning for hazards and yielding the right of way.
It's also important to adjust your driving for road and weather conditions, increase your following distance, and slow down when necessary.
"Following these safe driving practices can greatly reduce the risk of costly and dangerous collisions," added Cullen.