How to modify your driving habits on Halloween...
The streets on Halloween night can be a pretty scary place, whether or not the people wandering about are disguised. For some people, Halloween is a night like any other, while for others, it’s the culmination of weeks of frenzied planning!
The streets in general, but particularly in residential sectors, call for extra vigilance from everyone in the area!
If at all possible, avoid being on the road during peak trick-or-treating hours (usually between 5:00 and 8:00 p.m.). Otherwise, here are a few tricks to help you be as safety-conscious as possible:
- Slow down . How children will behave is often unpredictable. And even more so when you put them in a group setting, on an exciting night like Halloween, and allow them to walk around with a bag full of candies. Make sure you leave yourself enough time to react!
- Be super alert . Turn down the volume if you’re playing music in your vehicle and don’t activate the hands-free function on your phone. Be very aware of your environment, and stay highly focused to quickly identify any potential hazards.
- Be patient and courteous . Give yourself more time than usual to reach your planned destination. Ghosts and goblins aren’t known for their compliance with safety regulations, so you’ll want to be both benevolent and courteous while also keeping an eye out to make sure everyone stays safe! Remember the highway regulations concerning right-of-way and driver courtesy. For a quick refresher, check out Tecnic’s short video RPM+ (in French only).
Pedestrians and trick-or-treaters on foot should also heed a few safety tips on this particular evening:
- Make sure you’re visible. Wear a costume in light colours or with reflective tape; bring a flashlight with you - and use it!
- Wear make-up instead of donning a mask; you’ll have far less difficulty looking around you.
- Walk on one side of the road at a time, and only cross the road at intersections or pedestrian walkways.
If you plan on spending Halloween with your children or younger sisters or brothers, please take a few moments to make them aware of the safety measures they should be taking. A Halloween road safety quiz is offered on the SAAQ Website (in French only).
Happy trick-or-treating!
Source: SAAQ press release (in French only)
https://saaq.gouv.qc.ca/salle-de-presse/communique/prudence-dans-les-rues-a-lhalloween/
