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Tim Schewe

Tim Schewe

Castanet

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Changing driving behaviour

When I was in training to become a constable, I was told traffic tickets were issued to change driving behaviour. The inference was those changes...

10.12.2025 2

Castanet

Tim Schewe

Proposed road safety law

On Aug. 25, Shawnigan Lake RCMP were called to a fatal collision where 12-year-old Xavier Rasul-Jankovics was rollerblading on the road and was struck...

03.12.2025 2

Castanet

Tim Schewe

Caution opening car doors

Caution opening car doors

This is about a small claims action for damages to the open driver's door of a parked pickup truck when it was hit by a passing cyclist. The case was...

26.11.2025 3

Castanet

Tim Schewe

Police traffic enforcement

“First off, no disrespect to the police. I have a problem when day in and day out the police are pulling people over for traffic violations and...

19.11.2025 3

Castanet

Tim Schewe

Bullying new drivers

It was not uncommon to be told a new driver sign was not displayed because adults took the sign as a signal to bully the new driver. I thought that...

12.11.2025 3

Castanet

Tim Schewe

Deliniating road space

"To the city, for all the bollards everywhere making sure we drive within the lines. How are they making our streets safer? Do they not delay...

29.10.2025 2

Castanet

Tim Schewe

Dealing with bad drivers

These are the people who scare me a lot more than someone who inadvertently goes over the speed limit but is driving carefully and skilfully. The...

22.10.2025 2

Castanet

Tim Schewe

Hauling firewood safely

Heading out to collect firewood for the winter? Fall was always a good time to watch for pickup trucks with pyramids of firewood in the back on our...

15.10.2025 3

Castanet

Tim Schewe

Avoiding rear-end collisions

Perhaps the most common type of collision in British Columbia is the rear-end crash. ICBC reports between 22,000 and 25,000 of them each year. How do...

08.10.2025 2

Castanet

Tim Schewe

Bins on the road shoulder

Question: I cycle along a rural road near Nanaimo on Vancouver Island. The road I am talking about has a 60 km/h speed limit and a marked one-metre...

01.10.2025 2

Castanet

Tim Schewe

Deciding to stop driving

I've been teaching my Road Safety for Seniors course at Elder College since the early 2000s. I think the main interest of students is in keeping their...

24.09.2025 2

Castanet

Tim Schewe

Driving at night in rain

I am generally not a person who likes the rain but as I sit with my coffee in hand looking out the window of my home, I’m happy to see it and, no...

17.09.2025 4

Castanet

Tim Schewe

Using electric dirt bikes

Give them an inch and they'll take a mile. Since B.C. has allowed new motorized forms of transportation to use the roads, people have pushed the limit...

10.09.2025 3

Castanet

Tim Schewe

Share the road and sidewalk

A recent letter to Castanet in Kelowna, titled Keep Riders off Sidewalks, highlights a number of safety issues that new modes of active transportation...

03.09.2025 2

Castanet

Tim Schewe

School zone speeding

Question: I’ve been living in the Armstrong Elementary school area for the last 1.5 years and I have never seen any speed enforcement taking place...

27.08.2025 4

Castanet

Tim Schewe

Turning left is complicated

How much time do you have to look, decide and then begin turning left in heavy traffic? Do you feel pushed by the drivers behind you into making that...

13.08.2025 3

Castanet

Tim Schewe

Right of way at a 2-way stop

My question is regarding the right of way at a regular two-way stop sign. I've heard that once I have stopped at the sign, cross traffic is required...

06.08.2025 4

Castanet

Tim Schewe

Completing a left turn

This article is dedicated to the middle aged male driver who turned left in the intersection and completed that left turn half way into my lane as I...

30.07.2025 3

Castanet

Tim Schewe

Discouraging a complaint

When you are upset enough about the way someone is driving and you call the police to make a complaint about it, the last thing that you expect to...

23.07.2025 3

Castanet

Tim Schewe

Anti-idling bylaws

Question: I think leaving a vehicle running, sometimes without the driver in it, while parked in a public place, should be a fineable offence under an...

16.07.2025 3

Castanet

Tim Schewe

Noise rules enforcement

The question this week revolves around noisy vehicles in quiet neighbourhoods. Why don’t the authorities do more about it, asks my correspondent....

09.07.2025 4

Castanet

Tim Schewe

Drivers' reaction times

You may be able to disregard the rules in the Motor Vehicle Act and survive, but disobeying the laws of physics when you drive will eventually result...

02.07.2025 3

Castanet

Tim Schewe

Truckers' concerns

I asked a couple of truckers what bothered them about the drivers of small vehicles. We had a lively half hour discussion from which I gathered their...

25.06.2025 2

Castanet

Tim Schewe

Producing 'rolling coal'

Question: A few times every summer, when riding my motorcycle, I come up to a set of traffic lights and have to stop behind a diesel pickup truck as...

18.06.2025 3

Castanet

Tim Schewe

Slow in the 'cone zone'

If you ever have the chance to talk to a school crossing guard, flag person, highway maintenance worker or anyone else whose job requires them to work...

11.06.2025 4

Castanet

Tim Schewe

Careless smokers

It's that time of year again, sunny and dry with a chance of careless smokers. I watched another one take the last puff and then toss the smouldering...

04.06.2025 3

Castanet

Tim Schewe

Look before opening door

Imagine the surprise of the motorist at a collision I once investigated. He parked at the side of the road, opened his door and a passing car tried to...

28.05.2025 4

Castanet

Tim Schewe

When traffic signals go out

Question: With all the power outages in the past few weeks there have been a lot of intersections where traffic lights are out. Would you please...

21.05.2025 3

Castanet

Tim Schewe

No going on green

A green traffic signal doesn't always mean go The next time you are at the front of a lineup of vehicles waiting for a green light, watch the driver...

14.05.2025 6

Castanet

Tim Schewe

Danger of going wrong way

It is fortunate that one type of collision is relatively rare because the consequences are severe. I am speaking of driving the wrong way on a divided...

07.05.2025 4

Castanet

Tim Schewe

Time to drive better

A message in the DriveSmartBC inbox says there is an incredible shortage of common sense about the practicalities of driving and many people seem...

30.04.2025 3

Castanet

Tim Schewe

Surviving an unsafe pass

Sharing the road with aggressive or unsafe drivers can be both upsetting and dangerous. One common hazard is being involved in an unsafe pass, whether...

23.04.2025 2

Castanet

Tim Schewe

Towing an RV

There is a lot more to recreational vehicle towing than simply hooking up your trailer or loading your camper and making sure the rear lights work....

16.04.2025 3

Castanet

Tim Schewe

Important omissions

Question: When I purchased a truck, the seller did not notify me it had a rebuilt status and he did not write "R" (for rebuilt) in the appropriate...

02.04.2025 3

Castanet

Tim Schewe

Road safety research

There is nothing like a near miss or collision to focus your mind on road safety. I often hear from people hoping to enlist my help in solving their...

26.03.2025 3

Castanet

Tim Schewe

Keeping traffic separated

Question: Now that cycles and motorcycles are defined as “vulnerable road users,” why are they not allowed in bus lanes? (Please note, I am not...

19.03.2025 3

Castanet

Tim Schewe

A turn for the best

"Tell them they need to be in the proper lane before they turn" wrote a reader. Equally important is the need to end up in the proper lane after...

12.03.2025 3

Castanet

Tim Schewe

Dress to be seen after dark

Few people leave their homes without paying some attention to how they are dressed. When we choose our clothing to suit our personality, are we...

06.03.2025 10

Castanet

Tim Schewe