How's My Driving?

– By Robin Jovanovich –

Mine's pretty good for a nearsighted, middle-aged woman. Many of you others zooming around out there need road work or a Driver's Ed refresher course, however. If only there were an 800 number to call to report reprehensible roadstering by residents, I wouldn't have to write this story.

Here's what I don't do, nor should you road warriors.

For one, I refrain from trying to execute illegal U-turns on downtown Purchase Street while talking on my cell phone with one hand on the wheel.

Driving the wrong way on clearly marked one-way streets, especially in and out of Parking Lots #1 and #2, is all the rage. It seems to elevate the mood of the deranged drivers doing it, but what about the pedestrians who are taking a leisurely walk, still a Constitutional right, and have to jump out of the way when this happens? It's not your way or the highway, fellows! Note to Rye Police: Install a camera on the roof of 31 Purchase Street for some good early morning action scenes. There already is a camera on the roof of 14 Elm Place. Watch the restaurant goers performing all kinds of driving acrobatics as dinnertime approaches. I loved the BMW owner who backed all the way down Elm Place when he realized he'd missed the only spot.

With spring, arrive all kinds of wild behavior. Some of that is good, especially when it relates to birds, butterflies and flowering trees. Some of it is not so good, especially when the tops of convertibles go down and speedometers go up. We're all in a hurry and we all want our significant others to think we're cool, even us AARP fellow travelers. But would we ever pass the car (or cars) in front of us on Milton Road or Forest Avenue because the poor sap was obeying the 30-mile-an-hour speed limit? These people can't be serious!

At crosswalks, it's anything goes. Just make sure it's not you that goes. Until new lights and signage are installed at Elm Place, Smith Street and the intersection of Purchase Street and Theodore Fremd Avenue, step out cautiously. The law states that pedestrians have the right of way if they have entered the crosswalk. Pedestrians must also cross with the light, not just try skipping across in traffic.

Having watched drivers trying to navigate the Fireman's Monument roundabout for the past 15 years, I offer one recommendation: anyone seeking a Rye driver's license must first pass the Yield/No Yield IQ test. No studying or prep test is required, honestly. Yield means give way. Got it? Practice it!

And for all you SUV owners or anyone considering purchasing one (which is a bad idea because they are big and truly harmful to the environment here and everywhere), learn how to park responsibly, allowing room for the rest of us. When you're feeling a case of road rage, pick on a car or truck your own size.

As there are more registered vehicles than there are licensed drivers in the City of Rye, there's not much hope on the horizon at the rate we're all going. Rye Police are doing their job. According to Commissioner William Connors, the Department gave out 987 moving violation tickets in the first four months this year, up from 785 for the same period last year.

The rules of the road haven't changed, but driving behavior has. A little behavior modification could take us all a long way.