The toll on our roads and the deteriorating behaviour of our drivers causes me a lot of concern. I've blogged a bit about it over time, and I feel our authorities could do so much more about it. 

That a young woman was killed the other day in the hills, because she was thrown from a vehicle when not wearing a seat belt astounds me, yet this sort of mindless road behaviour is happening all the time. Another fine example of this was evident on the West Australian's web site this morning. 

From today's West Australian:

Man fighting for life after mystery freeway smash

The 25-year-old man was driving a 4WD on the Kwinana Freeway when his vehicle drifted off the road and hit a concrete pylon under the Cranford Avenue overpass.

WA police spokesman Ian Hasleby said that at about 5.15pm - a short time before the crash - a white Mitsubishi Pajero was seen overtaking several other vehicles heading north on the freeway near Berrigan Drive.

I think I have solved the 'mystery'! 

If you hoon along the freeway at high speed, displaying scant regard for fellow road users as you weave in and out of traffic at speeds well in excess of the legal limit, then you will increase the chances of being involved in a serious accident. Simple wasn't it?

There is an alarming increase in dangerous driving on our roads that though it is anecdotal, seems real enough to me. In the last three years I have seen a number of incidents that can only be described as suicidal. Incidents such as two vehicles racing along the Mitchell Freeway at 6:30 at night in heavy traffic, each doing about 140 kph as they weaved in and around late commuters in some sort of 'CHIPS' inspired drive scene from hell. 

The other day on the way to work I saw two vehicles on Canning Highway. One vehicle was no more than two feet away from the bumper of the car in front and they were travelling at about 90 kph. What this was about, God knows. Road rage perhaps? I think more likely it was just simple fun. 

The lack of any sort of public profile by law enforcement on our roads allows this sort of behaviour to go on unabated, but the problem is also deeper than that. What is the mindset of these drivers? 

It seems obvious to me that we need more traffic enforcement and stiffer penalties for hoons. 

I know I would be mightily miffed if one of my nearest and dearest came to grief through the skylarking antics of some twenty-odd year old hooning fuckwit. 

I don't care if these people kill themselves. In fact, I'll go one further and state that I hope they kill themselves (yes, I really do. Really). Perhaps then, when we need to go out and use the roads, we won't have to worry as much about which act of rank stupidity might bring about our own demise.

There are far too many people out there who go unrecognised for their efforts to brighten up our lives with random acts of gross stupidity.  With this in mind, I'm instigating a new award. 

Like the nominees, the award is totally worthless. I shall poll the candidates at the end of the year and you can vote on it. I encourage you to nominate anybody who you feel is suitably unworthy.

My first candidate for the job goes to the anonymous subject of my previous post (The Bike Rider). Should he win, I have no doubt that I will be awarding the honour posthumously. 

The subject of this post however, is a strong candidate indeed. I quote from the 'Perth Now' news site:

"Learner 'hooned in police station car park'
February 04, 2008 08:04am

 It is 3:15 a.m. as I write this and I have just come home from work. 

It also happens to be a Friday night and so there are revellers returning home who are still driving around the streets of Perth. Canning Highway was not busy, but there were cars ahead of me. Probably about 6 in all, and they occupied both lanes. Occasionally a car would change position from left to right lane, or right to left depending entirely I suppose, upon the driving habits of the occupants. As usual, some drivers hardly indicated - if at all.

I was in the right hand land, having recently overtaken a vehicle and I estimate I was travelling at a speed of about 65kph when I had the living daylights frightened from me. A motorbike came up on the inside lane and I had no warning of his arrival. He weaved his way through the cars ahead of me and what frightened me was the sheer lunacy of the speed at which he was travelling. I would conservatively estimate it at approximately 180kph. It was outlandish and suicidal and frankly inexplicable. it would have been bad enough on an empty road, but this road had cars in both lanes moving generally about 65 kph and changing lanes as well. I am mystified by the extent of the stupidity of this bike rider.

In keeping with my relatively new belief system and indeed, a philosophy that I am happy to debate and defend, I really would feel an awful sadness for his family and friends when his blood and flesh is eventually splattered across 300 metres of bitumen. As far as the fucking idiot himself is concerned though, I don't give a giant flying rat's arse. People like this deserve no sympathy, no compassion no remorse, no regret.  

I'm not wishing him death. I wouldn't do that and I need not wish it anyway for it will surely happen (if it hasn't happened already further up the road). I only wish that he takes no one else with him. People like this can be such a drain upon our limited emergency service resources and our overtaxed health system.

As I've said before, my milk of human kindness has curdled in recent years. I'll save my sympathy for the innocent and the more deserving. Fuckwits with a racing Honda between their legs do not attract the compassionate side of my nature. 

What ye sow, so ye shall reap.

I was driving to indoor cricket the other night and it was dark. The game was scheduled to start at 7:10 and I was on the road at 6:40.

Driving down Canning Highway I could see red lights flashing in the distance.  

"What's going on here?"  says I, to myself. (Sometimes it is the only way to conduct an intelligent conversation). "Is it roadworks ahead? An accident? An alien spaceship perhaps, arriving to celebrate Jamie Packer's Scientological nuptials?" 

As I drew closer I was able to see that the flashing red lights were in fact, affixed to the back of the tee shirts of a male and female jogging duo, striding at no great pace along the footpath. 

It made a lot of sense and it was a great boon for pedestrian safety. You couldn't miss it for quids and yet....  

They looked bloody stupid.  Never mind that they frighten the children and horses, but I dare say they would also keep away intergalactic wedding guests.

I'd rather be run over by a bus. Or a rocket ship.