Fall is a busy time of year for most people but the RCMP is hoping we'll take the time to drive safely. Constable Mike Martens says many people have time limits where they have to be some place, either taking a child somewhere, getting to a meeting, or quickly running errands.  "It's times like that when your mind starts flying around that you start missing the little things, seatbelt, lights, stop signs.  You just take advantage of almost every second that you can," says Martens.

He wants to point out that rushing through intersections and rolling through Stop signs won't save you more than around 30 seconds.

"Now is that 30 seconds really worth a $199 ticket for going through a red light or a stop sign?  That 30 seconds, did that make or brake your day?  If you get in an accident, you're probably tied up there for 20 minutes to half an hour, at the very least.  Now you've probably missed whatever you were supposed to be going to."

During Operation Impact, Manitoba RCMP issued 415 fines for aggressive driving, which includes things like speeding, following too closely, unsafe lane changes, and rolling through stop signs.

We're also urged to be more patient on the road.  "Patience is a very good thing," says Martens. "You might have somebody driving five kilometres below the speed limit.  That irritates a lot of people that they're not driving at least the speed limit.  But that could be their way of being very safe and we just need to learn to respect that." 

 

Tips For Avoiding Road Rage
Source "CanadianDriver"