Drivers need to examine habits

Gail M. Weatherill Albemarle County
Published: June 5, 2008

As a daily user of U.S. 29 North in Albemarle County, I would like to ask drivers to examine their consciences in regard to their driving habits.

The horrendous loss of a young girl’s life earlier this month highlights a worsening problem on our roads, the self-centered driver. As public outcry focuses on the Virginia Department of Transportation, little has been said about the carelessness required to ignore multiple warning signs and flashing lights several hundred feet before the intersection where this tragedy occurred.

No amount of government intervention will provide for the self-absorption seen in local drivers. Shaving five minutes off one’s drive time, conducting business and socializing by phone while driving are not worth anyone’s life. Yet these are everyday practices for many drivers.

Statistics verify that U.S. 29 is a dangerous road. While VDOT has a role in correcting that, a greater responsibility lies with those of us who pick up our keys every day and launch a several-thousand-pound vehicle onto Virginia’s roadways. No one’s time is so valuable as to warrant risking life and limb.