Pekeyen

EVER wonder why

some road markings are

yellow and some are
white?

J.. Banks recently dropped
me a letter wondering if
there is a difference berween
yellow lines and white lines
on the road and why. (Hey
folks, nore that Iam
responding to a letter, not 3
phone call. Letters good.
Phone calls? Not ss; good.)

Yellow lines painted on
the road are used to divide 3.
roadway in half (though nor,
alway's equally } so said road
can be used for two dirce-
tions of travel without con-
flict. Sometimes this line is
consistently solid.

Sometimes it is breken or
carefully dotted. Often times
it is doubled with various
broken /solid combinatians.

o White lines onthe road
show the: road and/or lane
edge. Never doubled, it is
either dorzed or solid only.

‘Sometimes there is a
noticeable lack of lines on the
toad, especially on quiet rural
roads where paint would be a
waste of money. In these
» cases, cars are required to
drive as close to the right
hand curb as practicable thus
keeping in stride with

signals

side-of-the-road rule (which
is suspended if'on a one-way
Street).

It is generally accepted
that a solid line of cither
color is not to be crossed,

It is generally
accepted that a
solid line of either
color is not to be
crossed, but this is
a generalization.

but this is a generalization.

While it is illegal to Gver-
take ar pass the vehicle(s) in
front of you by crossing a
solid line in most cases, it is
not always so.

The mighty Motor ¥chiele

Act (MIVA) goes to great
lengths to explain solid and
broken yellow lines and does
mention that when you begin

north shore news

# AUTO
Painted road lines there for a reason

to pass a carina broken line
area vou may finish the
manoeuvre even if the fine
has gone solid.

Driver's please note that
solid lines on the road tusualty
indicate a dangerous passing
area ~~ blind, busy or such —
so completing vour pass
quickly yer safely is para-
mount.

Note also that solid ling
laws are suspended if you are
overtaking an obstruction.
Curiousty, “obstruction” is
not defined in the MVA but
we generally accept things
like stalled cars, dead pas-
sums, roadside repair equip-
ment and parked buses to be
obstructions.

When vou have decided
you're being obstructed and
you must cross a solid line,
vou sdll must ascertain: that
“the movement can be made
with satery and without
affecting the travel of any
other vehicle,”

And, as Pee mentioned
before, crossing a solid line
for the purpose of entering
or leaving the road is also
perfectly legal as long as no
one else is affected or dis-
turbed by such a manoeuvre,

In many shuations drivers
are tempted to pass a vehicle
on the right which many
assume is illegal. This is also a

generalization.

The mighty MVA
describes very specific cir:
cumstances in which passing
avehicle on the right side isa
grand idea: Ifthe car in front
of vou has signalled its inten-
tion to turn fett, for example,
when there are two or more
janes designed for travel in
the same direction -— which
occurs quite frequently when
vou think about it.

Eves. when there is only
one lave but the road is wide
enough to easily fit an extra
car on the right.

All of these apportunities
are restricted, however, if
“the movement cannat be
made safely or by driving the
vehicle off the roadway.”

A road’s shoulder is
detined by a solid white linc,
if envthing, and this arca is
cousidered “off the road-
way.”

Driving on the shoulder is
generally considered iMegal
although the same line
Jaws/suspensions can some-
times be applied there.

. Solid white lines also com-

monly occur a few metres
before a busy intersection,
primarily to restrict cars from
Passing in or near chat inter-
section, which in itself is not
illegal but is very dangerous.
There is so much going

Friday, April 10 1998 — North Shore News — 29°

fine, well, you're out of line.

It is the astute driver who
looks well ahead of his or her
car, notes potential hazards ity
an upcoming intersection and
over there and now it’s safe deals with said problems well
tor me to do such and such. before they're in the thick of
Bang! it.

Something changed
because so and so was sud-
denly somewhere else.

Folks, ifvou're going to
change lanes at or near an
intersection the onus is on
you to make sure you're
being sate about it and if
you're crossing a solid white

nin an intersection and
many drivers there about
come to rely on the fact that,
laste they checked, so and sa
was there and so and so was

To sum up che purpose of
solid white fines, they tell you
that if you haven’r figured
out what lane vou want to be
in betore now, it’s too hate,
stay where you are.

‘Generally, that’s the skin-
ny on lines.

Be safe. ©

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