A Highway Traffic Act cannot solve all of our road safety problems. We need detailed collision information in order to recognize the relative risk of unorthodox human behaviours on our road systems.
As shown in the above photo, an elderly male rider has determined that his best option is to ride his medical scooter the wrong way on Brydges Street in east London, Ontario. This is so even though the sidewalk next to him may be a viable option. It is understood that vehicles should not be driving the wrong way on a city street yet there is some reason to believe that, for smaller mass vehicles such as bicycles and scooters, the rider’s ability to see and react to oncoming traffic could be improved when the rider faces that traffic. There are conflicting beliefs about what would be the safest approach.
This is why it is important to study the details of collisions. And it is important that collisions be properly documented with sufficient objective details so that a proper assessment can be made of their causes. When investigators do not possess the proper training or experience, or when they lack sufficient time and resources to complete a proper investigation, the final product produces error and variance in the collision data. That error and variance is often not understood or recognized by those conducting mass-data analysis. The end result is that we do not fully understand what needs to be done to reduce the risk of collision, injury and death.
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