In spite of safety
 
 
Phillip Hong
May 22, 2013
 
I was driving around an outlet mall a few miles north of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania when a couple of teenage jaywalkers decided not to look both ways before crossing in front of my car. I pressed by car horn softly a couple of times to warn said pedestrians that they were dangerously close to me. A little reminder any Ontario resident would be happy to issue, yield or respond in a civilized manner.
 
Scoffing in a way only a teenager can get away with, one of the pedestrians proceeded to shout sarcastically into my left ear canal. "Really?!?" she sneered, in a tone only the entitled could provide, despite the presence of a hive of cars on both sides of the road with no official pedestrian crossing in sight. I thought that Ontario-style drivers' education has a few little tips or rules that other jurisdictions don't cover.
 
I can only assume that all the classes, tests and training can prepare someone to ensure the safety of the road, even as a pedestrian. But apparently, no amount of education or testing has improved the behavior many drivers possess when they take the wheel.
 
Ontario is barely any different in comparison to that incident in Pennsylvania. Truth of the matter is, with twice the scrutiny and instruction in a graduated driving system and through gridlock many can't swallow, we wind up the more rude bunch.
 
I was driving home in one of York Region's important arterial roads, avoiding the highways as simple volume would've caused more unnecessary road rage. In spite of rules like those covering traffic lights and rights of way, a Toyota hybrid from Markham decided to beep at me for not accelerating fast enough for his own individual liking.
 
This isn't Top Gear. The City of Victoria, BC says accelerating at a slower pace (around five seconds) from zero to 20 km/h would save you a good amount of fuel, while contributing fewer emissions by letting go of the iron foot.
 
Said Markhamite then changes lanes without signalling, speeds over the speed limit, smacked his horn and then body slams his supposed hybrid in front of me. I can tell he loves stroking his misled ego in a bid to "feel" closer to his destination.
 
But what would MTO say? Failing to signal is an offence with demerit points. Do that a few times and you could suddenly wind up with a suspended licence if caught, if not worse. Just to save three seconds?
 
Phillip Hong is a columnist with 148.ca.
   
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