ROAD MANNERS

Rotorua Morning Post, Volume 2, Issue 320, 6 September 1932, Page 2

ROAD MANNERS

MALCOLM CAMPBELL GIYES ADYICE TO CAR OWNERS. STANDARD HAS IMROYED. If one were to take a plebiseite of motorists of long experience on the question of road manners, I think a majority would agres that these have improved very greatly during the last two or three years, writes Sir Malcolm Campbell'in the Daily Mail. At the time whsn the fall in ear prices brought motoring within reach of the million and the roads wsre invaded by a new army of drivers who had had no previous experience of controlling vehicles of any lcind the standard of road manners fell appallingly low. This was only natural, for you cannot expect the totally inexperienced driver to shape like an old hand all at once.

How to Learn. It might be thought that, with a steady flow of new recruits to motoring, the general standard would remain stationary, because among them must be a number without any previous knowledge or experience. That, however, is not so. We have to remember that when the sudden expansion of motoring developed a very few years ago many people who then acquired cars had never, or seldom, heen in a motor-car before. But as the number of cars increases a greater number of people are becoming acquaintedfas passengers with the customs of the road, and are thus being prepared for the time when they will become drivers. As a consequence, wie expect a progressive improvement in road manners, and the expectation is fulfilled.

But, even -allowing for all that, I never take the road without seeing examples of had and inconsiderate driving which demonstrate that there is room for further improvement. I still see drivers "cutting in" — a most diseourteous as well as dangerous practice. I constantly -encounter the driver who will hang on to the crown of a narrow road and drive everybody else down to the edge of the grass verge. Then, too, I meet the one who, when another driver signals that he wants to pass, accelerates and tries to get away. There is not a driving sin that I do not see committed a dozen times in a week. Two years ago, however, I should have had to say a hundred times in the same period. All the adviee that can be given to the new motorist has been repeated many times by myself and by many another, but it is only by constant reiteration of the maxims oi the road that the general sp-read of that knowledge which brings improvement can be achieved. The whole subject hoils down to a single golden rule: Behave toward every other road user, whsther awheel or afoot, as you would like him to act if the position were reversed. It is no more difficult to drive a modern motor-car than to walk rapidly along a crowded pavement. All the driver has to do is to pay attention to the road and keep out of trouble. He must concentrate on the road, and he should, where possible, keep a hundred yards of it in view. Many new drivers keep their eyes glued on the road ten or fifteen yards in front of the car, and anything that is happening farther away comes as a shock when they reach the spot. If you do as I suggest you will never be caught napping, because the hun-dred-yards view gives you p-lenty of time to pull up. This may sound rather like trying to teach grandmoth- I er to suck eggs, but my remarks are intended for the novice. Don't be Kierb-shy. Keep as close to the near-side edge I of the road as traffic conditions permit, leaving plenty of room for vehicles to J pass in either direction. One of the commomest offenders against the code of good manners is the kerb-shy driver, who apparently is profoundly unhappy unless he has six feet of road between his car and the left edge. 1 He is possibly not so much to blame l as some of us think. W'e all know : that from the driving seat of any car I the near-side edge of the road seems j very much closer than it is, and in the j case of modern low-hung body, in which the near-wing canot be seeq, this is greatly accentuated. Only experience will show that when ona ! thinks the car is close to the verge it is in fact four or five feet away. A Useful Gadget. Cars of this character should be fit- i ted with the light ball-surmounted standards attached to the front wings which gives the driver something to go upon. I hate them, but they are undeniably useful to the novice. Sound your horn on all necessary occasions, but do not overdo it. The driver who hoots in and out of season either suffers from nerves and ought 'not to be driving or he is one of those inconsiderate people who want a monopoly of the road and use their horns as a signal for everything else to get off it. The horn is intended to let others know that you are coming, so that they may exercise proper caution. It is not a "clear the road" signal, although some seem to think that "I sounded my horn" is a good defence to any eharge brought against them. In passing cyclists give them plenty of room. You never know what they are going to do, and a foot or so may make all the difference. It is certainly all the difference between courtesy and had manners. If you are approaching a road obstruction and other vehicles are held up waiting for you to pass, accelerate and get the passing over with the minimum of delay. Some drivers seem to take pleasure in slowing down in such circumstances. And when you have made up your mind to pass another car and have signalled your intention, put your foot down and pass quickly. Don't shilly-shally and then, after making several tentative bites

at it, go by at a mile an hour faster than the other car. That is bad manners, dangerous, and stamps the driver as a nervous novice. Be Sure: Then Go. Make up your mind what you are going to do on all occasions and then do it. But don't make up your mind until you are sure it is safe. If you only think you can get through a gap in the traffic, don't try; the few seconds lost will not matter. If you are sure you can do it, then go ahead and don't fool about. Don't be too insistent on your rights. You may have the right of way, but the other fellow who declines to give way may he even less experieneed than yourself. Or he may be a roadhog,^ and it will he very small satisfaction to you or your insurance company to know that you were involved in an accident through being right!