Jack Yan on Vox

Do high-stop brake lights still help?

nobody@vox.com(Jack Yan) — Mon, 19 May 2008 18:30:40 +1200

In the early 1980s, the high-stop brake light—one located in the centre bottom of the rear window—was said to be a saviour for motorists. The idea: because this brake light would not be obscured by another car, and could be seen through the window of a following car, the third one would be able to stop short in case of any accidents further on.
   I remember Dad fitting one to my car when I was a teenager.
   But, as I drove through the Mt Vic tunnel today, are they still practical? Yes, as the third of three cars I could see the high-stop brake light of the first. But I could not see any further—an SUV was in the way.
   Because of taller vehicles such as SUVs and minivans, I now wonder if these devices are as useful. And for whatever reason, I could not see any high-stop brake light on the SUV in front of the first car.
   I’d be interested to learn of any statistics about nose-to-tail accidents of late. There seems to be more based on my daily driving but that could be accounted for by population increase.

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Fix my street again, please

nobody@vox.com(Jack Yan) — Mon, 12 May 2008 17:42:13 +1200

I could have spent half an hour doing something more productive but them’s the breaks as a ratepayer.

Attn.: Transport Group, Wellington City Council
via email

Ladies and Gentlemen:

We’re very happy that WCC has contracted Fulton Hogan to reseal Mamari Street, Rongotai. The road was in need of repair and it was done with very little fuss or annoyance to the residents. The road workers were extremely courteous and made sure that we could carry on with our business without delay.
   But—and there’s always a but—the entry to the street is more compromised than before, certainly more so than it was after the last repair.
   The design of the entrance from Coutts Street is akin to that of a driveway now, rather than a street, which normally I would not have a problem about. In fact, for security, it makes the street look more private and out-of-bounds than it really is.
   I know that the Council and Fulton Hogan would have seen this as an improvement and I thank you for that consideration.
   There are some road safety issues as a result of the improvement, which you would not have been aware of without being a resident of Mamari Street.
   That corner (outside Leo’s and 163 Coutts Street) has traditionally collected a lot of water. Now, because of the way the entrance is designed, more water collects in the new gutter, making it hard for motorists, especially those unfamiliar with the street, to see that it’s not a regular turn from Coutts Street, but more like a driveway. I see potential for accidents as a result of this; at the least damage to suspensions at the carriageway edge and gutter. This has become apparent with the extra rain we've been getting since the road works.
   Secondly, the corner on Coutts Street between Salek and Mamari Streets is notorious for tailgating. Again, this would be something you wouldn’t have known. Some motorists will tailgate more on that corner, unaware of the pedestrian crossing there, or that the car in front has slowed to turn into Mamari Street, despite indicating. In the past one could make a hasty but safe retreat into Mamari Street if tailgated. Today, I am not so sure as the driver of the first car would have to slow down considerably more and tailgaters might not be able to react in time.
   Thirdly, exiting Mamari Street is now more difficult, especially with front-wheel-drive cars which, as you know, form the majority of modern cars unless you go to neighbourhoods with BMWs and Mercedes. The gutter and carriageway crossfall from Mamari to Coutts now make it hard for these cars to get traction and on a wet day, wheelspins aren't uncommon.
   With the increased traffic to and from the Warehouse in Lyall Bay, this intersection has become far busier and wheelspins, while a motorist is trying to join the main road, are potentially dangerous.
   It’s another thing you would not have known without living here: with the greater number of SUVs and minivans, it is not always easy to see out of Mamari Street. We often have to come out into Coutts more than we safely should to see what is approaching from the southern end. A motorist coming out of Mamari Street risks getting T-boned as some drivers from Coutts coming from the northwestern side are not always prepared to slow down for the pedestrian crossing or for motorists exiting from the smaller street—sadly, we New Zealanders can be mean-spirited drivers. But to avoid wheelspins motorists may have to come out into the crossfall or risk the front wheels going back into the gutter.
   Fourthly—and this is one that maybe affects me and one other neighbour more than other residents—the verge from Mamari Street to Coutts Street is at a more severe angle than I would like even though it is probably within your guidelines as being acceptable. My car is not a low car, but one neighbour has a Corolla with a spoiler. Even on mine I hear the tiny front spoiler (it is not a large boy-racer one, but a simple plastic air dam) scrape as I exit Mamari Street and enter the Coutts Street carriageway. I hate to think what it would do to her car which does have a larger, after-market front spoiler.
   If it was just one issue I’d have been happy to put up and shut up, but faced with several potential hazards, especially the ones that are now becoming apparent with the rain, I hope you can look into this.
   I am not sure what the best solution is, but the faux brick paving of Salek Street may be a solution for Mamari Street if the aim is to slow entering motorists. Whatever the case, I believe the entrance to the street should resemble that of a street, rather than a driveway, for safety reasons, even if I personally like the idea of living on a secluded, private-looking street.

Very truly yours,

Jack Yan
13 Mamari Street
(04) ***-****

cc for Councillor Leonie Gill, Eastern Ward

As I pasted this in, I thought: in the old days you might back this up with a letter to the editor of a local newspaper, or send it to someone higher up than the person you were addressing it to, to get extra attention. Now we just turn them into open letters and stick them on our blogs. Power to the people?

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Gene Hunt is a law unto himself—even in real life

nobody@vox.com(Jack Yan) — Sun, 11 May 2008 11:50:18 +1200

The first time I read about Philip Glenister getting his driver off for speeding (35 mph in a 30 mph zone) I chuckled, as he adopted his Gene Hunt persona. The cop saw the actor and said, according to Glenister, ‘I’m terribly sorry about this sir, I’ll let you off this time if you don’t mind.’
Glenister had apparently said to him prior, ‘Yes, I’m the one on the booze, not him. Go and catch some proper criminals.’
Then I found the earliest article on the incident in the Daily Mail tabloid which contrasted this with others in the UK:

Earlier this week it emerged that Sydney Duffy was fined for doing 35mph in a 30mph area when he tried to leave the road quickly as his wife had an epileptic fit. The 63-year-old has appealed against the fine from Cumbria police and will appear in court.
And Stephanie Cornwall was issued with a £60 fine after rushing to hospital when her six year-old son Alfie was mauled by a dog. The mother, 40, from Leicestershire, was travelling at 37mph in a 30mph zone.

   One law for celebrities?
   The Met should have more sense than to fine people like Mr Duffy and Ms Cornwall.
   At least here the traffic cops allow for some speedometer error and that humans cannot be expected to constantly monitor their speed when traffic safety is at issue. If you kept staring at your speedo, you might get involved in an accident!
   It is worse here in New Zealand than it was 30 years ago but by and large, 5 mph is not something for the cops to get that upset about.
   I know there are exceptions but I am talking in a general sense. As we work in metric, 5 mph is roughly 8 km/h.
   The second incident probably would have been frowned on more today, less so 30 years ago: 7 mph goes past that 10 km/h leeway that some cops have as a rule of thumb.
   I tend to drive at the legal limit but realize that due to speedometer error I can be anywhere between 5 km/h over or under.
   The ‘Your speed is’ digital signs around some parts of New Zealand are helpful as a means of calibrating my own speedometer—so why do so many of them have their displays closed?
   They tend to show that my car’s 50 km/h is actually 47 km/h so I tend to go closer to 55 km/h on my speedo.
   The problem is that speeding here is governed by legislation that brings strict liability, which basically means “no excuses”.
   But I would think a Kiwi copper would have been able to judge in both cases somewhat better than his or her British counterpart.
   I am not sure if we would distinguish between celebrities and everyday folk. Any stories? I know of one incident told to me by an eyewitness (the passenger) where a rich driver was let off because of the car he drove, and the officers wound up going into macho mode to discuss the vehicle and neglected to issue a fine for excessive speeding. I cannot reveal more since I am not permitted to, and I would hope it is exceptional rather than commonplace.
   If a flash car could get me off a fine, I would have really opened up the Astons and Porsche 911 I have driven, but I prefer my clean licence (knock on wood) and was much more careful.

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Have you ﬂipped a Ford … lately?

nobody@vox.com(Jack Yan) — Fri, 21 Sep 2007 23:33:47 +1200

Ford has complained about this TVC from the New Zealand Land Transport Safety Authority. I have to say I agree with its complaint. The car is clearly identiﬁable as a Ford Falcon XR6 or XR8 model, resembling the one still on sale. Even those who do not know much about cars may subconsciously register the vehicle’s shape and think negatively about the XR6. And there is some literature on how cars are judged not just by their badges, but by the way they look.
I would have used, maybe, the previous-shape ’01s, or something not on regular sale. In the past, a lot of LTSA advertisements have used older model year cars.
Even even now that I know what this TVC is for, my first thought is, ‘Damn, this is a good Ford ad.’ Judge for yourself below.

Land Transport Safety Authority NZ - landmines commercial

Ford s’est plaint à l’Administration de la Securité des Transports de Terre en Nouvelle-Zélande après ce pub, parce que cette voiture est leur modèle Falcon. Je pense qu’il ressemble à un pub pour la Ford Falcon, jusqu’aux moments derniers.

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Smokey and the Bikini Bandits

nobody@vox.com(Jack Yan) — Sat, 10 Feb 2007 00:52:58 +1300

The Bikini Bandits are in force

Damn, why weren’t the Bikini Bandits in force when I was last in København? I even was there on graduation day and for midsummer, with drunk students all over town.
I wondered if this was real. As my friend Ian points out, the name of the traffic cop is too fabulous to have been made up. But the reality is that it is part of a governmental campaign to get people obeying the 50 km/h speed limit. Sorry! Scandi is not as liberal as people think!

(Des membres du groupe Pub!: je suis désolé que cet article est en anglais, mais je voudrais le partager.)

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