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Filed under: Etc. , Government/Legal , Safety California recently banned talking on cellphones , and then followed up by making texting illegal , while driving. For a moment there, it was looking like all you were going to be able to do behind the wheel in California was, you know, drive. But thanks to the dedication of Governor Schwarzenegger, individual freedoms have not been extinguished. Promising to only sign bills that are "the highest priority for California," Arnie vetoed a bill that would ban driving with dogs in your lap. While we understand the spirit of the veto -- California does have much bigger issues to deal with than lapdogs -- we do sometimes wonder why a 40-pound kid has to be in a child seat, but a 40-pound, unpredictable animal can take a nap between you and the steering wheel. [Source: AP , | Photo CC | Credit: Katrinkles ] Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments
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Filed under: Etc. , Government/Legal , Driving Drivers can fly through the Nürburgring Nordshcleife at tremendous rates of speed, risking life and limb to shave a second or two off a lap time. But apparently if you let the rear wheels slip a bit while coming into a turn, you're a drifter just begging for a pink slip. Bridge to Gantry blogger Dale Lomas was banned from the 'Ring for what he says is nothing more than some oversteer, but the heavy-handed Germans didn't see it that way. Officials wrote Lomas, who prides himself as a paid racing instructor, a ban slip with an offense that translates to "Drifting while Overtaking." The Green Hell isn't just some lawless speed haven, which makes sense considering the dangers inherent in the famous circuit's myriad twists and turns. Still, while getting banned from the 'Ring is a real bummer, at least the pink slip looks good hanging on the office wall. [Source: Bridge to Gantry ] Read | Permalink | Email...
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Filed under: Etc. , Government/Legal , Green , Driving Police in Whitehall, NY cold-busted an inebriated motorist over the Memorial Day weekend for swerving around in the middle of the street and weaving onto area sidewalks. That happened plenty of times over Memorial Day weekend, but what makes this story interesting is the fact that the driver was piloting an electrically powered cooler. Under New York state law, driving any motorized vehicle must be done sans alcohol, and that means anything from cars and boats to motorized coolers falls under the letter of the law. While some would argue that the electric cooler doesn't pose a real threat to pedestrians or other motorists, we'd disagree. This idiot could have caused other drivers to swerve to miss him, and strike others in the process. While the cops did the right thing by pulling over this cooler-driving clown, we question the need for an ice cozy and cup holder on this vehicle. Of course people are going to use it to drink...
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Filed under: Government/Legal , Safety , Driving , Canada Four U.S. states, one Canadian province and one territory have already banned smoking in your car when children are present. Next up to potentially adopt the legislation is Ontario, Canada. A bill has been introduced into parliament that would fine anyone smoking in a car when someone under the age of 16 is also in the car. The bill makes no exceptions for, well, anything. It doesn't matter if the car is stopped or moving, if all the windows are down and the sunroof open, or whether the smoker is driver or passenger. Smoke inside a motorized vehicle with a "child," and it'll cost you $250 Canadian. While we don't argue with the supposed spirit of the law -- protecting children from the ill health effects of smoke -- we do wonder about the relevant age. Sixteen years old seems kind of long in the tooth to be classified as a "child," while 17-year-olds are suddenly adults who can handle it. There would...
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Filed under: Car Buying , Government/Legal , Plants/Manufacturing , BMW , Mercedes Benz , Porsche , Driving Under proposed new fuel economy rules set by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), automakers with powerful short-wheelbase models are going to feel some pain. The agency is considering a plan to create two sliding scales of efficiency for cars and trucks of different sizes. Automakers will be assigned fuel economy standards based on the "footprint" ( short wheelbase = small footprint ) of their vehicles, and the number of vehicles they sell. Companies like Porsche, BMW, and Mercedes-Benz, independent luxury brands with high-performance models, will be hit the hardest. Interestingly enough, Toyota, Chrysler, and General Motors, big players with diverse model lineups, won't feel as much pressure. Conforming to the tough new proposed rules may be very expensive. As a result, some industry executives expect some automakers, such as Porsche, just to...
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Filed under: Etc. , Government/Legal , Driving Have you ever hit the throttle when a traffic light turns yellow, and then it turns red faster than you thought? We know it's happened to us, and for the most part we thought the problem was our bad timing. In six cities across these United States, missing a yellow light has less to do with bad timing, and more to do with shorter amber signals. Six cities have been busted recently for having an amber light that lasted less than the minimum timing at an intersection, and millions of dollars in fines have been collected when drivers went through the premature red and got caught on camera. Chattanooga, Tennessee; Dallas, Texas; Springfield, Missouri; Lubbock, Texas; Nashville, Tennessee; and Union City, California all cut the timing on their lights, and while some have paid back the fines, others have not. In Dallas, over $700,000 was collected in a matter of eight months, and in Tennessee the light timing was changed at only a few intersections...
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Filed under: Government/Legal , Green , Driving Manhattan's latest attempt at disguised taxation has ground to a halt in the most trivial fashion. Mayor Michael Bloomberg's proposed congestion charge for cars and trucks headed into the city below 60th street was summarily ignored by lawmakers. Rather than a contentious fight in the state assembly, the clock was simply run out and the bill died without being put to a vote. The failure of Bloomberg's plan means that New York City will also miss out on 350 million federally earmarked dollars for mass transit, and other ways to improve air quality and decrease gridlock must be sought. Even if it had passed, Manhattan's fee of $8 for cars and $21 for trucks would have been lower than what Red Ken charges for entry to London proper. While the goal of decreasing gridlock and improving air quality is admirable, we can see how the congestion charge would further squeeze those who can least afford it. To be sure, an alternative to...
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Filed under: Government/Legal , Safety , Videos , Driving Most of us have gotten speeding tickets before, and it's usually not a pleasant experience. It's "Yes sir" and "No, sir" and "Thank you" while the officer is chastising us for whatever minor infraction we've incurred. All the while, you're thinking to yourself, "I was doing 8 mph over the speed limit. Shouldn't he be out chasing terrorists or something?" So this video is for all of us who would have so very much enjoyed telling off the guy or gal about to make us pay potentially hundreds of dollars in fines and insurance costs just because we were in a little bit of a hurry to get to the house/work/that big sale at Autozone/etc. We held our tongues, took our punishment and probably avoided higher fines or, worse, jail time. How the alleged offender in this video manages to keep his freedom is a complete mystery. That is one patient cop, and I hope he got a raise for putting...
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Filed under: Car Buying , Trends , Government/Legal , Driving In a sign that the high cost of gasoline has finally struck a central nerve, car shoppers today are reportedly more concerned about fuel economy than they are about the brand of vehicle when shopping for a new car. In addition, consumers want more government control over fuel economy. This startling news, and a reversal of consumer trends two years ago , is the result of a new AAA survey which studied consumers' attitudes towards fuel prices. It appears that consumers were getting used to the cyclic fluctuations of gas prices. Prices shot up based on market conditions, supply and demand, and season increases. However, they always seemed to drop back to more palatable levels... at least they used to. Today, according to leading economists, consumers are finally catching-on to the idea that $4 a gallon gas might be the norm. This reality-check of fuel costs will lead to downsizing, and a focus on vehicle efficiency. Have we...
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Filed under: Government/Legal , Green , Safety , Driving , Motorcycles There is a nice discussion going on over at AutoblogGreen regarding the act of lane splitting , which is when a motorcycle rides the dotted line in-between lanes. Lane splitting is a common practice in much of Europe, but here in the States it's only legal in California. Golden State law dictates that a motorcycle is only allowed to split lanes when traffic is moving very slowly or stopped and "must be done in a safe and prudent manner." NBC San Diego ran a little news piece on lane splitting and found that some drivers in California weren't even aware that it was legal, and others dislike the practice. According to the video, the practice of lane splitting was initially allowed for safety reasons, and while many doubt that the practice is safe, data suggests that lane splitting reduces rear-end collisions involving motorcycles. So, what do you think? Is lane splitting a good idea? If so, should it...
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Filed under: Government/Legal , Safety , Driving Have teenagers gone nuts? The Federal Highway Administration is reporting that the percentage of teenagers with driver's licenses is going down . Yeah, decreasing! What is up with that? When I was growing up, my teenage years focused on just one objective... driving. All I wanted was to get my driver's license. That little card with your picture on it was the golden ticket. You could borrow your parent's car, fill the tank (and grab a candy bar) for $20, and nobody could reach you until you returned. We didn't have cell phones, text messaging or GPS tracking. A driver's license represented freedom . So, what happened? Experts aren't blaming unmotivated teenagers. Instead, they point the finger at the environment in which we are raising our kids. In today's world, parents are much more likely to chauffeur their teenagers from place to place. Tighter state laws govern when kids can drive, and in many cases legislation...
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Filed under: Government/Legal , Earnings/Financials , Driving , UK We report this unfortunate development in solidarity with our British comrades. As if it weren't hard enough living in London - already one of the most expensive cities in the world - Mayor Ken Livingstone has drastically increased the congestion charge for cars entering the city. The fine, originally instituted in 2003 at ₤5, will jump exponentially to ₤25 per day for every vehicle entering downtown London. The news follows last week's announcement that the charge for commercial vehicles increased to a whopping ₤200. City officials claim the ₤30-50 million it will raise from the added tax revenues each year will be invested into public transportation. Conservative MP (and noted car nut) Boris Johnson calls the charge a "stealth tax" on families requiring larger cars. As before, low-emissions cars are exempt from paying the fee . Not to worry, though: for drivers who have yet to trade in their secure Range...
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Filed under: Etc. , Government/Legal , Driving In an effort to thwart habitual speeding, Transport Canada has developed a new system that can make exceeding posted limits difficult or impossible. The device utilizes GPS and a speed limit map coupled with technology that caps a vehicle's top speed based on the legal speed of the road being traveled. Once the vehicle arrives at the predetermined speed limit, the device makes it very difficult to go any faster. For now, Canada is looking to slap this stingy speed governor on the vehicles of perpetual speeders and reckless drivers, but the technology could one day be used for all drivers. Lovely. Luckily for drivers here in the States, a strict speed limit governor is just un-American, and legislators know it would be very unpopular politically suicidal to implement. Still, we're sure there'd still be some people willing to embrace technology like this. Heck, a lot of parents of 16 to 18 year-olds probably wouldn't mind purchasing...
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Filed under: Government/Legal , Driving If you're of the opinion that the religious right has too much influence on American politics, you should check out Saudi Arabia. The royal family has relied for decades on the support of fundamentalist Wahabi clerics who, in return for their support to the ibn Saud regime, have insisted on ever more stringent laws. Among those measures has been a strict ban prohibiting women from driving that has been in effect for 75 years since the founding of Saudi Arabia in 1932, but the Saudi government is finally preparing to lift the ban. The government decision reportedly stems from an effort to placate a mounting women's lib movement, whose activists have been mounting rolling demonstrations by leading convoys of women driving around in the kingdom despite the law prohibiting them from obtaining driver's licenses or automobile insurance. According to the Saudi government, the ban will be lifted by the end of the year. Critics point out, however...
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Filed under: Etc. , Government/Legal , Safety , Driving Neenah, Wisconsin has such a speeding problem that it can't keep up. Even with a full court press of law enforcement, drivers continue to speed and have even sped by other motorists receiving their obligatory revenue-production invoice. In an effort to keep drivers on their toes while also leaving time to fight real crimes, the Neenah PD will post cardboard cutouts that look like an officer pointing a radar gun in strategic locations. Like something out of Weekend At Bernie's , the paper tigers will be rotated with living, breathing officers so that the ruse has a chance of effecting change. At this point, it's less about filling the coffers and more about quelling an epidemic of overly-velocitized drivers. [Source: Winding Road, Photo: brentkmoore.blogspot.com] Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments
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