1/22/24

Thousands of people get killed and injured every year by people who ran red lights or stop signs and hit them. One example is a student from a driving school I used to work at. After finishing at the driving school and getting his driver’s license, he was struck by a drunk driver coming from his left as he was going straight through a green light. It was estimated the drunk driver was going about 70 mph. Our student was killed on impact.  

So remember, a green light (or no stop sign) does not mean it is safe; It ONLY means you have right-of-way. And there is a huge difference between the two! Make sure you look right and left (as well as for oncoming traffic turning left in front of you) early enough that you have a good chance of being able to brake and prevent an accident that would not have been your fault. This is defensive driving!

If you haven’t taken your driving test yet, make sure to get in the habit of turning your head enough as you do this so that your examiner will notice that you are looking. There are more points on the driving test in the category of “observation” than any other category – and for good reason!