7141 replies to this topic

[rmpeers]

wow. once car that actually did not even bear the brunt of the impact got completely flipped over. low-slung cyclist with some baggage onboard was lucky to be 0.5 seconds late to the party.

that guy really was leaving esquimalt in a hurry.

that's actually a fair amount of traffic for 3:12am if the time stamp is right. i take it it's the brake/mechanical ship video from the se corner?

I note that the cyclist coming in from the left beat a hasty retreat.

[Mike K.]

I was once in a car accident and recall how furious some motorists were that the intersection had been partially blocked. It made a tense situation so, so much more difficult.

Victoria, c’mon. This isn’t a big city. We don’t need this cold, callous attitude to get ingrained in our culture, wherever it may be coming from.

A VV fan on Facebook sent us this message:

Dear People of Victoria, If you see a Driver with Hazard Lights flashing and they are Clearly in distress and cause there car broke down... Please Be a decent person and come help me?

1:27pm Sept 5th 2019 I was stuck in the intersection waiting for BCAA to arrive for 45mins before 3 Real Nice People finally came and Offered to help move my Car out of the Pandora and Cook Intersection to a near by parking lot.

Huge thank you to the Construction workers who helped me out, I was in tears from all the Pissed off drivers, Cyclist and Pedestrians all yelling and swearing at me to get off the road and then just driving away and not once offering to help me. It really hurts when someone is in need of help and fellow humans refuse to stop and ask if I need help. Today people where super biter and unfriendly, and upright Rude Throwing Insults and swearing at me.

If you see someone with there Hazard Lights flashing whom are clearly in Danger, Please help them out rather then just assuming they are fine and blocking traffic because they have nothing better to do.

I have Lived in Victoria for 30 Years and in the past few months I have noticed a serious lack of friendliness towards other Victorians... what has happened to Friendly safe Victoria?

[sebberry]

 what has happened to Friendly safe Victoria?

 

Divisive leadership.  

[Nparker]

Divisive leadership.  

With a "bring it on" attitude.

[aastra]

 

Victoria, c’mon. This isn’t a big city. We don’t need this cold, callous attitude

 

Hmmm. But I thought Victoria was a notoriously unfriendly city? Longstanding reputation as such going back a few decades? We've discussed it on this board several times.

 

People are people. If you're a jerk, you're a jerk (VVers should understand this better than most). Doesn't matter if the population of your city is 178 thousand or 622 thousand or 5 million and five. Also, if you're in a hurry, you're in a hurry. Doesn't matter what the population of your city is. Your kid is waiting for you. Your exam starts at the scheduled time and if you're late you flunk.

 

I'm not defending impatient jerks. I'm merely pointing out that there's nothing new going on here. One of the ugliest freak-outs I ever witnessed in my life was at the exit to the HBC parkade back in the day (1993?). A pedestrian gave holy hell to an old lady pulling forward in her car. But if that pedestrian's kid had terminal cancer and if his marriage was falling apart, is there really any sense in expecting him to demonstrate a stronger degree of self-control simply because he lives in Victoria instead of in Tucson?

 

I'm reminded of the "Victoria's street people are harmless" thing. They must be harmless, because Victoria is smaller than [insert some larger place here], and thus we can comfortably dismiss the various random stabbing murders and attempted murders on Douglas Street. Those same random stabbing murders and attempted murders would be evidence of a problem in Jacksonville or Quebec City, but in Victoria we don't need to act like they're worth noting.

 

References to how big Victoria is or is not tend to be non sequiturs in such circumstances, is my point.

 

And obviously many of the people you encounter during your day aren't necessarily even "Victorian" to begin with. How many pissed-off New Yorkers & Torontonians were in the mix there when the unfortunate Facebooker was stuck at Cook and Pandora for 45 minutes? Was anybody checking the IDs of those unfriendly drivers, cyclists, and pedestrians?

[Mike K.]

Funny thing is, the most helpful people I've ever encountered were New Yorkers.

 

People in big cities don't need to act the big city part. People in smaller cities sometimes feel like they do, because, you know, the next town down the highway is a hick town and all.

[aastra]

I thought Victorians were obsessed with pretending their city was smaller than it is? Height restrictions, development restrictions?

 

Maybe Victorians want small-town development with big-city traffic? Is that it?

[aastra]

Some of the most naive people I've ever met re: street crime and street issues were from Toronto and Montreal.

[Mattjvd]

9/10 times the car with the hazards on, on a city street, has decided it's okay to double park for a few minutes. While it's a shame no one stopped to help the broken down moterist, I can understand the misconception.

[lanforod]

9/10 times the car with the hazards on, on a city street, has decided it's okay to double park for a few minutes. While it's a shame no one stopped to help the broken down moterist, I can understand the misconception.

Not in a intersection!

[On the Level]

Hmmm. But I thought Victoria was a notoriously unfriendly city?

 

How many cities have you lived in?

[sebberry]

9/10 times the car with the hazards on, on a city street, has decided it's okay to double park for a few minutes. While it's a shame no one stopped to help the broken down moterist, I can understand the misconception.

 

People seem to forget that when they're broken down, they should raise the hood in addition to the hazard lights.  

[Mike K.]

Yes, very good point.

[DustMagnet]

People seem to forget that when they're broken down, they should raise the hood in addition to the hazard lights.  

 

While that does seem like an obvious marker (similar to a window flag that says "NEED HELP" instead of your favourite sports team) it also seems very awkward.

 

Your car stalls in the middle of a intersection, so you should get out and walk around to the front while angry motorists drive around you and raise your hood (assuming you know how - and that's not unusual in today's No User Serviceable Parts Inside cars)?

 

I think more respect for the context (as lanforod pointed out) is a better bet.

 

Or the aforementioned window flag...

If someone is double parked with their hazard lights flashing you can still offer to push their car out of the way. 

[Mike K.]

Safest thing to do is to not sit in the broken down vehicle. As you’re getting out you raise the hood then walk a safe distance away.

[Mike K.]

Last night a bus full of UVic students rolled along a logging road between Port Alberni and Bamfield, killing two and injuring others.

I’m very familiar with that stretch of road. It’s sktechy on a beautiful sunny day let alone in heavy rains at night.

Story: https://www.ctvnews....lover-1.4593236

[G-Man]

Definitely a bad road. How it has not been fixed in these years is beyond me. Last time I was on it in a car I had to drive at about 20 km/h.

[Victoria Watcher]

it'd be a bad week if that's another wilson's bus.

[Mike K.]

It gets re-gravelled at regular intervals but that road can also be quickly chewed up during periods of heavy rains or when frost contributes to pot holes.

You also need a proper vehicle for those roads. They’re not intended for sedans and station wagons.

[Mike K.]

Statement from UVic:

Web Statement from the President about the death of two students

September 14, 2019 - University of Victoria

It is with profound sadness and deep regret that I inform you that two students have passed away as a result of a bus crash mid-Island on the way to the Bamfield Marine Science Centre.

Our heartfelt thoughts go out to the students’ families and loved ones, to whom we offer our sincerest condolences. We also grieve with those closest to these members of our campus community, including roommates, friends, classmates and professors who were in contact with them during their time on campus.

The university has put in place measures to help those closest to these students deal with this trying situation. As a matter of privacy, the university will not be disclosing personal information about students

We encourage students who need support on the weekend to contact Campus Security Services at 250-721-7599 for counselling services.

Faculty and staff can contact the Employee and Family Assistance Program, 844-880-9142.

The University of Victoria wishes to respect the families’ privacy at this time. In light of this, we ask that you keep our students’ families, friends and colleagues in mind in your communications and social media interactions.

Let us remember to support one another during this difficult time.

Jamie Cassels
President
University of Victoria