Watching for Emergency Vehicles

According to the Ministry of Transportation,
It’s the law for any driver who sees and hears an emergency vehicle approaching from either direction to move out of the way. [source]
However true the above statement may be, it seems as if more and more people are doing their own thing whenever they see emergency vehicles on the roads. That being said, the following are a few tips and pointers for watching out for emergency vehicles:

Multi-Lane Highway: If you see an emergency vehicle approaching; no matter what direction they are approaching from, put your turn signal on and move to the right hand Read the Rest…

NHTSA Releases Motorcoach Safety Action Plan

According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), the U.S. Department of Transportation released its Motorcoach Safety Action Plan on November 16, 2009.  The plan lays out steps for improving motorcoach safety and addresses other major safety issues such as driver fatigue, vehicle rollover and oversight of unsafe carriers to name a few.
Every year, approximately 19 motorcoach occupants are killed in motorcoach crashes, according to data collected by the DOT’s NHTSA. According to an NHTSA press release:
The comprehensive action plan announced today proposes enhanced regulatory oversight of new and high risk motorcoach operators, as well as the increased use Read the Rest…

Be Nice to Motorcycle Riders, and Share the Road

Whether you’re an avid motorcyclist or someone who shares the road with passing motorcycle riders, the following video lends some excellent advice on the various hand signals that motorcyclists use when riding. Knowing what these hand gestures mean can help you understand what their intentions are while driving on local roads and/or highways.  Take a look:

Seizing Drunk Drivers’ Vehicles is Unconstitutional

At least, that’s what A DuPage County judge out of Illinois ruled last month.  According to an article published by the Chicago Sun-Times,
A DuPage County judge ruled that Illinois’ vehicle forfeiture statute gives the state too broad of authority to impound vehicles, particularly in cases where a vehicle’s co-owner loses a car despite not being charged or where an accused offender faces only misdemeanor charges.
The case stems from claims by three men charged with multiple counts of drunk driving. They alleged a nearly decade-old state law did not give them the ability to make a case with judges for getting Read the Rest…

Volvo’s New Pedestrian Protection Feature

The following is a video that shows the new pedestrian protection feature in the Volvo.  The only thing that I wonder is what would happen if a paper bag rolled in front of your car. Would the car stop for something like that as well? Take a look:

Could You Turn it Down a Bit?

Maybe it’s just me, but I feel like every time I get into my car and have to drive somewhere at night, people are shining their brights at me for no reason.  Recently, when discussing this issue with my boyfriend, we decided that the reason I felt this way may have something to do with the way my vehicle sits on the roadway.  For instance, when I used to own a smaller car (versus an SUV), it sat lower to the ground.  Therefore, I was constantly under the illusion that drivers were just driving around with their brights on. But Read the Rest…

Tom Jones’ Truck Explodes!

Tom Jones’ news truck explodes!
Tom Jones (not the “it’s not unusual” Tom Jones, but rather the Atlanta television reporter Tom Jones) and photographer Leonard Raglin were injured when their news truck touched live wires and literally exploded!  The resulting damage saw the news truck in ruin and the underlying road blown apart.  The truck explosion actually had the force to knock off the side view mirrors, leaving them dangling on the sides of the vehicle.  The front of the truck was also singed and smoldering after the power surge went through the vehicle.
The incident happened as Jones and Raglin were Read the Rest…

The IIHS Researches New SUV Crash Tests

I’ve owned a sport utility vehicle (SUV) for the past couple of years now, but I have driven one for the past six or seven years.  I think that, overall, sport utility vehicles are great except for the fact that a) they guzzle gasoline like crazy (so make sure you’ve got plenty of extra cash laying around) and b) they have the potential to roll over more easily.
The following video by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) lends some insight into new crash tests for sport utility vehicles.  You should take a look and perhaps some notes:

New Porsche Spyder is Breathtaking..

Are you happy with the looks of your Porsche Boxster but not the performance?  Well, not very likely, but if you are that guy or girl who just isn’t satisfied with the speed and handling of the current version of one of the world’s finest automobiles then the new Porsche Spyder is the car for you.
The Spyder boasts some new features and lighter body weight that will make it peel the pavement off the ground.  Porsche has always been known for producing very fast, very agile vehicles, but the new Spyder looks to be a thoroughbred even in the Porsche Read the Rest…

Texting While Driving: When Will We Understand the Dangers?

I am almost ashamed to admit sometimes how addicted I am to my cell phone.  However, I am not the only one.  It’s just that cell phones nowadays have all sorts of neat features that allow you to be everywhere at once (or so it seems).  That being said, since cell phone usage has blown through the roof, so too have the number of car accidents involving people who were too busy playing with or using their cell phones to pay attention to the roadway.
The Youth
It seems that when it comes to most minutes used, teenagers take the cake in Read the Rest…