Kiwi drivers: Near misses, bad habits and uneducated drivers

Monday, 14 January 2019

OPINION: New Zealand has a problem. The road toll is constantly increasing - reaching 382 deaths at the end of 2018 - and we need to confront the issue. Associate Transport Minister Julie Anne Genter says it will be several decades before New Zealand's road toll drops substantially.

With commuters, couriers and tourists travelling in every direction, every day, there are a lot of wheels on our roads. 

But what exactly is the issue? Is it our lack of attention, ignorance towards road rules, short attention spans, or lack of knowledge and experience? 

We asked New Zealand what they think the problem is. From professional drivers who get behind the wheel and get on our roads everyday, to workers experiencing issues to and from their office - here are their stories. 

**READ MORE:

* Road toll increases to the worst it has been in 10 years

* Vision Zero: Older cars make our roads less safe, but upgrading presents challenges

* $1.4 billion safety upgrades for roads in 'desperate need' of repair

* Drug-impaired drivers now involved in more fatal crashes than drink-drivers

* Raising the bar for driving licence test - set them off on country roads**

It's too easy to get a licence

We are a nation of terrible drivers because our drivers are not required to reach any kind of competency level at any time, ever, in their driving career. Drivers are never taught to control a sliding vehicle, or to use ABS brakes in the way they are intended to be used: braking firmly, and then steering so to avoid the crash. Ninety-eight per cent of drivers just plow straight on, directly to the scene of the impact.

The only way to improve the situation is to radically and severely increase the standard required to obtain and maintain a drivers license. It would mean that a non-trivial portion of our population would never qualify for a licence. Having a licence should indicate an extremely high level of car control, observation, prediction and situational awareness has been achieved, and that the driver is truly competent at handling any and every driving situation that can arise on our roads.

True, this would probably make getting a license cost a few thousand dollars, but given that every road death costs New Zealand millions of dollars, that cost will be more than paid back once an entire generation of competent drivers are on our roads. The people who do not qualify (or cannot be bothered working hard) for a licence will be well catered for by self-driving cars which will be about 10,000 times safer than an average driver today.

Chris Davies

Car v truck: the car will always lose

I am a truck driver in Christchurch who delivers steel and I am constantly a victim of abuse from car drivers because I take too long or don't let them pass me.

I pull over when it is safe to do so to let them pass as I know I am bigger and a lot slower in a big truck. But cars always try and overtake me in silly places, speed up to pass me in passing lanes, or head into merging lanes, which causes me to brake suddenly and use evasive action to miss collisions. 

Something needs to be done as it is hard to stay a professional driver and remain calm when people constantly abuse us. Something needs to be done to educate drivers about trucks and how dangerous they can be when it goes wrong. At the end of the day, when there's a crash between a car and a truck, the car always loses and the truck driver has to deal with that for the rest of their life.

Dylan Brydon

Change the rules to stop the bad habits

New Zealand must be one of the only OECD countries that allows juveniles (less than 18 years) to drive a motor vehicle without going through driver training by professional instructors.

This may have worked many decades ago when the traffic on our roads was much less, however, as the ever-increasing road toll clearly demonstrates, this country is in dire need of much tougher licensing criteria. Then, we can slowly get rid of poorly educated drivers in the future, and prevent poor driving habits being passed on for generations by whoever happened to 'teach' them how to drive.

Paul Wieland

Easy two-step fix

There are two main issues on our motorways. 

The first is the road code specifies you keep left unless overtaking, yet a large number of Kiwi drivers sit in the right line matching or going slower than the lane to the left. This leads to dangerous overtaking manoeuvres. 

Secondly, a lot of people don't drive at a consistent speed. Many drivers seem to be unaware that they're driving between 80kmh and 90kmh when there is a single lane or corners. But these drivers then speed up to over 100kmh when there are passing lanes. It's infuriating for the more competent drivers who can safely drive around the speed limit. Once again, this inconsiderate driving is leading to dangerous overtaking manoeuvres. 

If we just fixed those two issues then we would save a lot of lives and so much grief for so many families.

Andrew Allen

Licences are a privilege, not a right

I am on the road every day and the biggest issue we have is the entitlement that 'I have a licence so I can do whatever I want'. They don't indicate, they turn and talk to passengers, secretly look down to text, tailgate while not being aware of what's a head, and go 80kmh in a 100kmh zone, but speed up to 120kmh when there's a passing lane. 

No-one cares about anyone else and that is very scary. Having a licence is a privilege, not a right.

Jane Lobb

Motorcyclists need more respect

I had my full motorcycle licence before I went near a car and I have never received a parking infringement or speeding ticket. 

Every week, I have cars pulling out in front me because they don't see me. A lot of drivers seem to a have a 'well, go around me' kind of attitude. My registration cost is triple the cost of car rego, and I have top of the line safety equipment that is never cheap to buy or replace. 

Motorcycles need more respect, better treatment, cheaper costs, and larger fines if any motorcycle rider drives in a manner deemed unsafe. These costs should be severe. 

Carl Bradley

Near misses every day

I have been a truck driver on New Zealand roads for seven years, and unfortunately, there are near misses just about every day. 

Drivers just aren't respecting the road code anymore, and their behaviour on the road is getting worse every year. 

I am originally from Brazil and I have witnessed first hand what happens on the roads when police either get too busy or there aren't enough of them to police the roads.

Sheyk Souza

Tourist tests are necessary

I work in a cafe at the airport near the rental car offices. Almost all of the people that come through are foreigners, many who don't know how to drive on our roads. On my way to and from work, I have had so many near misses with foreign drivers. 

Recently, I was driving home through the roundabout, indicating left to exit, when a tourist rental camper van drove straight through the roundabout, cutting me off. I was so close to hitting them, I had to slam on my brakes and hit the horn. 

I think to fix this problem, tourists need to take a driving test in New Zealand before they can drive on our roads. I have only just received my full licence and it took so long to get, so I don't understand how it is so easy for tourists to drive on our roads.

Vanessa Blackie

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