I am getting sick and tired of taking my life into my hands every time I leave the house. There are certain drivers in Revelstoke who seem to possess an utter contempt and complete disregard for pedestrians.
On numerous occasions, I’ve almost been run over by a discourteous driver, and I once saw someone drive up onto the curb to get around a pedestrian who was crossing the street; I guess they just couldn’t wait five seconds for the crosswalk to be empty. The last straw for me happened just the other day, on Monday. I was crossing Campbell and Second on my way to work, and a driver had stopped to let some traffic go by. I got about halfway across when he suddenly sped through the intersection and passed right in front of me as if he didn’t care that I was there. I was still in the crosswalk and could’ve been run over if I’d been further along.
A similar incident happened to my grandmother, and she thinks it’s the same person as the guy who almost ran me over. She was crossing the street by the museum, and the driver ran a stop sign and passed so close in front of her that she could touch his vehicle. She told me that the driver wasn’t even paying attention, he was looking in the opposite direction. She had to yell to get his attention.
I’m wondering what can be done about this? Mandatory retesting for drivers every five years? Graduated licensing only goes so far to reduce accidents, but once you’re granted full driving privileges, there’s nothing beyond that to guarantee you’ll stay a safe driver.
Forget young people, I’ve seen some middle-aged people on the road who shouldn’t have their licenses.
Joseph Daniels
Revelstoke
