| TO KILL OR NOT
TO KILL, THAT IS THE QUESTION! |
Indeed, although the headline is somewhat dramatic,
incidents reported to me and scenes witnessed by my own eyes all indicate that it is only
a matter of time before we have a serious or fatal accident on our streets in Sheringham.
Picture the scene, you are an elderly couple walking home from a wonderful night out at
the Little Theatre, you have parked your car up Waterbank Road and being none to steady on
your feet you sensibly move well away from the junction before attempting to cross the
road. All of a sudden a car screeches around the corner and misses you by literally a
hair's breadth. You are thoroughly shaken and lucky to be alive. The witnesses to this
incident are also very shaken as they expected to see two elderly people in pieces across
the road. The driver of the car continues to the top of the road and pulls off with a
screech of tyres to continue wreaking havoc. Holway Road is treated like a race track, the
roundabout as a bit of fun - no need to stop, the back streets are rat runs and the High
Street is Swaffham Banger Race Track in its infancy.
When you get behind the wheel of a car, you are taking upon yourself the responsibility of
driving a LETHAL WEAPON. It is not just the 'boy racers' that need to take heed, it is ALL
DRIVERS. You do not own the roads, you are not always going to be able to stop and one day
you are going to make a mistake or misjudgment that will harm either yourself or another
person. Even when you hit inanimate objects like walls or parked cars, this affects
somebody else even if it is only in their pocket. Use your indicators, they are not just
pretty lights, but tell other road users what you are going to do.
I personally do not know why incidents in cars are called accidents as they very rarely
are. Most of the time they are preventable, by respecting the vehicle you are driving and
its potential to kill and by respecting other road users, whether they are on foot or in
another vehicle. Take a few minutes out to think about how you would feel if you did kill
an innacent person, after all, THEY would be dead YOU would have to live with it. DRIVE
CAREFULLY - HAVE RESPECT. Pedestrians can do their bit too, if you have to step off the
pavement, then CHECK behind you, our streets are narrow in places and not all drivers
reactions are fast enough to deal with people stepping out in front of them. It will hurt
you more than it hurts the car! |
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