YP Letters: A '˜dead right' roads attitude can be fatal

I WRITE from a lifetime (thankfully) of experience as a pedestrian, a cyclist, motor cyclist, car and HGV driver.

Working for the local highways authority helping to clean up at the scene of a fatal or serious injury road traffic accident (RTA) was not something I relished, it was a dreadful experience. I still ask myself “Why did this happen to these people?” How could it have been prevented?

My own survival resulted from a police constable talking to me as member of a class of nine-years-olds. He told us we would all be involved in an RTA, and he was absolutely correct. But being a stubborn person, even at that young age, I was determined to prove him wrong.

After the talk, my friends left a few seconds earlier than me. About to dash across the road to catch them up his words flashed into my head, I stopped and looked, it saved my life. I resolved never to become a statistic through my own hand.

Wishing to better my driving, I took a course with the Institute of Advanced Motorists and undertook a two-hour test with a class one police driver.

The class one officer had to pass the police driving test with a 97 per cent score or above to pass. I was successful in my own test and thank all who trained me and the class one police driver who passed me and his words of praise.

I worked very hard to reach the level required, the IAM group who trained me to achieve my success, the group also ran a highly successful course for motorcyclists. I highly recommend any motorist or motorbike rider to seek out the police driving manual Roadcraft for cars and/or motorcyclists, a copy of the Highway Code, and enrol with the IAM or Bikesafe.

Never be “dead right” you won’t cheat death or injury with that attitude and you may kill or seriously injure someone else.

It’s your call, be stubborn and help yourself.

From: Jarvis Browning, Main Street, Fadmoor, York.

CYCLISTS should take more notes on the Highway Code as one has shot pass me on the near side and cycled through a red light! Cyclists have no more right to break the Highway Code than we have. Bring back the National Cycle Proficiency test! I still have the badge from the late 1950s eand early 1960s.

A barrier to their revenue

From: Harry Sutcliffe, Doncaster.

THE unions have just decided that they can hold us to ransom again with the 3.2 per cent fare increase, we suffer as passengers (The Yorkshire Post, August 16). The Government want us to use public transport. But then they keep upping prices and lowering services.

Instead of upping prices, why don’t they get staff to do their jobs? I travel from Doncaster to Wakefield Westgate many weekends.

Only once in every 10 journeys do I see a conductor. At the other end barriers are open, you can walk straight through. I do buy my ticket, but do think that a lot of people do not.

Hence lost revenue there. Get them doing their jobs. Instead of barriers being open, close them make them have to either show ticket or purchase one.

From: Peter Hyde, Driffield.

THE usual mistake the Conservatives make is privatising services such as the railways and ambulance service (The Yorkshire Post, August 16).

The company that buys them always put profit first, otherwise why would they buy the franchise?

Such vital services should be kept firmly in public hands. People are fed up to the back teeth of inefficiency and failure which cannot help but be aggravated by the numerous cancellations and late trains.

How on earth can working people continue to keep their jobs if they are continually let down by the only means they have to get to work? Re-nationalisation is the only real answer.

From: Henry Cobden, Ilkley.

TRANSPORT Secretary Chris Grayling proposes changes to 
the way railway staff are paid, does interviews in the morning – and then refuses to go on Channel 4 News in the 
evening when his plan has unravelled. Why is he still in a job?

Equality can give us hope

From: John C Fowler, Leverton Gardens, Sheffield.

DESPITE all the bad news as the world is overwhelmed with unprecedented problems with climate change, financial crises, the mental health epidemic, the

population explosion etc, if you look closely you can see reasons for optimism.

After the US primaries across four states, more women candidates than ever will contest governorships and House seats in November’s mid-term elections. This is happening in one of the superpower nations.

If the world is to be saved, equality must become established as an everyday normality in the lives of all the world’s citizens.

Everyone is equal, regardless of age, gender or disability and no one is enslaved.

Pay employees accordingly

From: JA King, Thurgoland, Sheffield.

ISN’T it time that companies took their responsibilities seriously and trained their employees to the degree of education and competency required to carry out the required tasks?

Employees should also accept that while they are under training they should receive much lower wages.

In years gone by, apprentices received only a fraction of full wages until fully trained.