Remember the days when you stopped at a traffic light, not a
care in the world, before we all felt the need to be doing multiple things
during every moment? These days, we’re
all guilty of trying squeeze in every little thing at a stoplight. The truth
is, it may not be saving us time. A lot of people are focused on anything but
the road. When you become so engrossed in something else that you forget to be
aware of your surroundings it can cause time loss, create traffic problems and
jeopardize safety.
Whatever is distracting you can’t be that important that you
forget you’re behind the wheel. Driving is a privilege and a responsibility to
yourself and to others around you.
There’s a lot of precious cargo travelling around daily.
Being alert to where you are in line and the traffic
patterns is helpful. Don’t be the person everyone’s honking at because the
green arrow expired while you completed that Facebook status update. So when
you’re in a hurry and you’re behind “that person” and the tables are turned,
remember to set an example by changing your behavior and not be mad. People are
more likely to mimic what they see rather than what their told.
Some of the examples that follow are more common and
familiar offenders while some are plain ridiculous. You know who you are. There
are usual suspects like texting, posting, playing video games and tearing the
car apart in search of something that fell between the seats. Then there are
those who change clothes, get out and rifle through the trunk, put on make up, dry
shave, give over zealous affection, read, watch a movie on an overhead DVD
player, cut their toe nails, paint their toes or try to figure out directions. What’s
the strangest thing you’ve seen?
It’s ok to do certain things at a red light so long as
you’re not oblivious to everything else around you. So if you must do it,
glance up and around you frequently so you’re ready when the light changes.
Kind of like checking your rear view mirror when you’re driving. It will
eventually become a good habit.
If something is really so important that it’s distracting
you from driving, it’s probably in everyone’s best interest that you pull over
and resolve the issue before continuing on. A little preparation before
departing can alleviate much of the strange behavior we observe at traffic
lights.
People tend to think things won’t happen to him or her. Until it does. That’s when the resolution is made NOT to do
whatever caused a problem again. Don’t let it happen at all. Let’s all try to
be more courteous and aware on the road. Together we can improve our
environment and interactions while arriving safely and happily at each
destination.
