Right-Hand Rule

Press, Volume CIX, Issue 32072, 21 August 1969, Page 10

Right-Hand Rule

Sir. —With increasing traffic, two factors in the righthand rule are becoming everincreasing problems. The first is for the driver to decide whether to drive to rule and give way to all the visual traffic on the right thereby slowing the flow of traffic, or to get across an intersection as a reasonable opportunity offers. In this the driver assumes that the right-hand traffic is travelling at a legal speed. However, this is not always the case, and the second problem arises from the traffic on the right speeding up to take advantage of the courtesy extended to vehicles in front travelling at a normal speed. This places the driver on the left at a great disadvantage, as what was a reasonable gap between vehicles suddenly disappears, with the vehicle on the right travelling at a speed that its brakes cannot master. Traffic lights are the answer, but more penalties for speeding up approaching an intersection would reduce the number of accidents. —Yours etc., SLOW TOM.

August 11, 1969. (The Christchurch City Council’s traffic superintendent (Mr J. F. Thomas) replies: “New Zealand drivers have an ever-increasing number of regulations to govern their driving in an endeavour to make the roads safe for ail users. Driver attitude would be the crux of the whole matter, and it would appear that many drivers need a constant reminder that caution, consideration, and courtesy are essential attributes if collisions on our roads are to be reduced. In the city area many intersections have had positive controls by way of control lights and compulsory stop and giveway signs installed to reduce the element of human error.”]