As owners of both 4-wheels and 2-wheels, like most, we regard ourselves as careful, considerate drivers, well aware of the risks from both our own actions and those of others on the road. In fact, I will go as far as to say that we have a good understanding of how to behave on the road, particularly when, for example, there is a motorbike behind us & they need the confidence of our moving the car slightly left to know that we've seen them before they overtake us; or when we're coming up to a T-junction and know to stop earlier than the white line invites us to in acknowldegement that the lorry turning into our road needs a wider turning circle than the white line would have allowed; or that heavy loaded vehicles need a greater stopping distance, so pulling in front of them at a motorway exit just so we can get ahead isn't such a good idea.
But if we're both so good at driving then how come Paul and I also critise each other's driving skills and ability, whether it's that the other one drives too fast, brakes too late, or doesn't always look where they're going?
We have both been involved in road accidents. Paul's involved someone pulling out in front of him, then immediately braking. He was on a motorbike and the other driver just hadn't seen him. Paul broke both of his collar bones. My accident involved a head on collision in an East Budleigh country lane where the other driver couldn't be bothered to wait at the wider point of the lane, instead deciding that his car was narrower than it was. I slowed down when I realised what was happening, but he just kept on coming at me! Although the cars came off worse than either driver, I lost my nerve. It took me 4 weeks before I could even leave the house to walk into the village to post a letter, and I nearly didn't drive again.
We have also experienced many near misses, including by those who change lanes without first looking; HGVs coming round a blind bend at speed from the opposite direction using up both sides of the road; drivers overtaking on the brow of a hill not seeing the oncoming traffic ahead; those pulling out of a junction apparently having "not seen us"; and those who think that their side of the road just isn't enough for them.
So when I saw the shocking front page story in the local Express and Echo newspaper on Saturday, it was a sharp reminder that none of us are perfect drivers and we all need to stop taking our driving for granted, thinking that it won't happen to us. Actually, it can happen to us. When we get behind the wheel, none of us are perfect.
Express and Echo Saturday 31st July 2010:
Motorcyclist dies in crash with 4x4 just outside Exeter
A motorcyclist died in a collision with a car just outside Exeter.
Witnesses rushed to help the rider, believed to be in his fifties, who was travelling on a Harley Davidson when he was in collision with a Honda 4x4 on the B3212 at Longdown.
The crash happened at around 11.20am yesterday, close to Culver Lodge. The owner of the property, who wished to remain anonymous, told the Echo he rang for an ambulance after a horrified driver travelling on the road knocked on his door for help.
The resident, in his thirties, took a blanket from his home and placed it over the motorcyclist.
"I didn't know anything until someone came to the door and asked for help, so I rang the ambulance," he said. "It was a motorcyclist. It happened right outside our house. "I went out and took a blanket for the poor guy. I put the blanket on him." He added: "It does seem like an accident blackspot."
Police and the Devon Air Ambulance attended the incident. The road was closed for several hours and diversions were put in place while accident investigators examined the scene. The driver of the Honda is not thought to have suffered any serious injuries in the crash.
Charles Eden, owner of nearby conference venue Culver House, said he believed the motorcyclist had been on a bend in the road when he was in collision with the car.
"The motorcyclist was going one way and the car was going in the other direction, but I'm not certain if it was a head-on collision or not," he said. "There was another accident in the same spot just before Christmas. We were returning from Exeter when we saw the road was closed. We had to abandon our car and walk the rest of the way, escorted by the police."
The motorcyclist was heading towards Dunsford while the Honda was travelling on the road to Exeter.
Parish councillor Vicky Kernick, who lives in Vicarage Lane, Longdown, described the incident as "very sad".
A Devon & Cornwall Police spokesman said: "Police dealt with a fatal collision on the B3212 at Longdown, near Exeter. Police were called to the scene of a collision between a car and motorcycle at around 11.20am.
"Paramedics and the Devon Air Ambulance were at the scene treating the motorcycle rider. The driver of the car, a Honda, is thought to be unharmed."
http://www.thisisexeter.co.uk/
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MECA Services proudly supports the work of the Devon Air Ambulance Trust as it's chosen charity of the year. For further information please visit www.daat.org/
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