On the way home yesterday, driving about 70 mph on the bypass, a car breezed by me on the inside lane. That’s not unusual as a fair number of drivers will squeeze a little extra out of the speed limit; I suspect we’ve all done it both consciously and absent-mindedly.
What caught my eye about this car, though, was the fact it had U.S. government plates. Neither is it unusual to see such plates speed by on the highway. It often seems people on government business are too important to bother with traffic safety laws.
Maybe these drivers are all responding to some sort of emergency. OK, I don’t really believe that for a second and I bet I’m in the majority there.
I noted another embarrassing example a couple of weeks ago on the interstate. I had the cruise control set on 70 when a white van slipped by me, probably doing between 75 and 80. On the side of the van was “Central Baptist Church.”
You see where I’m going?
When I’m driving at work, it’s in a mini-van with the company’s name and phone number highly visible on the back and sides. The owner has said, “A lot of people in town know our van and will call me if they see it driven in an unsafe manner.”
I’m sure that’s true, but I believe it runs even deeper. It’s bad public relations if anyone thinks I’m rude or pushy as a driver, if they think I’ve inconvenienced them in some way. On the other end of the spectrum, I can garner good will by driving friendly, allowing a driver to get onto a crowded road, that sort of thing.
Along that line, I was on the highway a few weeks ago and noticed a state department of transportation work truck on the shoulder with its yellow lights flashing. As I passed, I saw the two state employees helping a woman by changing her tire.
Now, that’s a good message to send taxpayers. It seems like a good program for government agencies to encourage capable employees to check on and maybe even assist stranded drivers. Even if they could not help, their presence would relieve some of the anxiety.
All of this is one reason I’ve been hesitant about putting things on my car.
A vehicle cuts me off on the road, rapidly changing lanes without signaling and without comfortable space and then I notice a family of fish decals on the trunk.
OK, the owners put those there thinking ... I presume ... they are providing a witness to their faith. Well, they are, but what kind of witness is it when they are putting other drivers at risk by their dangerous actions?
Similarly, a bad driver or even a generally good driver making an occasional mistake can give an offended person reason to slam the university promoted by a bumper sticker.
“Way to go, Aggie. You’re making all of us look bad driving like that.”
The best answer is for us all to drive safely and friendly. However, should I forget to change lanes in time and end up doing so without giving another driver the warning he desires, I’d rather he just blames that “crazy old guy” instead of passing out blame to whatever identities I might share via automobile decorations.
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