Motorists should stay off the road around New Year’s Day, says the car buyer’s Dog & Lemon Guide.
Editor Clive Matthew-Wilson says:
“The Christmas period, including New Year’s Day, is always a high accident period. This year New Year’s Day falls on a full moon. Assuming that the studies linking antisocial behaviour and the full moon are correct, it would be a wise idea not to be on the road around New Year’s Day.”
All vehicles on the road should have their lights on over Christmas, says the car buyers’ Dog & Lemon Guide. Editor Clive Matthew-Wilson says:
“A car with its headlights on is easier to spot than a car with its headlights off. It’s that simple.”
Matthew-Wilson pointed to World Health Organisation statistics showing that vehicles using daytime running lights have a crash rate 10-15% lower than those that do not.
The government needs to empower Maori communities to educate and train their own people to safely operate cars, says the car buyers’ Dog & Lemon Guide. Editor Clive Matthew-Wilson says:
“Maori are a small percentage of the population but a large percentage of the road toll. The current driver’s licence system was designed by and for average white New Zealanders, and it often doesn’t work well for other groups.”
Claims by BMW that its cars are the most reliable in the UK are misleading and untrue, says the car buyers’ Dog & Lemon Guide.
Editor Clive Matthew-Wilson says BMW’s claim is based on the number of breakdowns reported by a leasing company, not on the everyday experience of most BMW owners.
The global car industry is likely to begin a second round of bankruptcies as the current economic upturn falters, says the carbuyers’ Dog & Lemon Guide.
Editor Clive Matthew-Wilson says:
“Those who optimistically see the green shoots of global economic recovery should take a look at the motor industry for a reality check. While it's nice to be optimistic, it's better to be realistic: for the last three or so years, the economic pessimists have been consistently right, while the economic optimists have been consistently wrong.
A proposal to fine motorists who run out of fuel on Auckland’s motorways is both inappropriate and cruel, says the car buyers’ Dog & Lemon Guide.
Editor Clive Matthew-Wilson says:
“People generally run out of gas because they have no money. Only a politician or a policeman could come up with a bizarre scheme that fines people for being poor.”
“Auckland has an appalling public transport system, so people have no choice but to use the motorways.”
The government’s ‘Safer Journeys’ discussion document, which seeks public consultation on road safety issues, is mainly a repeat of the failed policies of the past, says the car buyers’ Dog & Lemon Guide.
Editor Clive Matthew-Wilson says the document focuses mainly on changing driver behaviour, while missing out on proven road safety strategies.
The government’s cellphone ban won’t work unless it actually changes driver behavior, says the car buyers’ Dog & Lemon Guide.
Editor Clive Matthew-Wilson – whose road safety research was awarded by the Australian Police Journal – points to overseas research showing that teenagers, who are the most vulnerable road users – tend to ignore cellphone bans.
