Driver responsibility
We've had another weekend with more road fatalities. And repeated comments from many saying the same things – the chief causes of the fatal and other accidents are excessive speed and road conditions. I understand speed is the prime cause of single-vehicle accidents, such as cars running off the road and hitting trees or lamp posts, and where the real cause is driving too fast for the conditions, compounded by inexperience and stupidity. Other accidents involving more than one vehicle are normally the result of at least one of the drivers seriously in the wrong – such as driving on the wrong side of the road. In these, speed only contributes to the severity of the crash, but is not the chief cause. When will drivers start to take responsibility for their own actions, rather than just blaming the condition of the road or slow or inconsiderate drivers, and demanding that money be spent so that they don't have to worry about others? All drivers can help in reducing head-on accidents – have driving or headlights on at all times, keep left at all times, and consider other vehicles. Obeying road rules is far cheaper than massive upgrading of the roads.
Noel Hall
Papamoa
Museum cost
Maureen Guy can rest easy (Letters, April 4). Her dinosaurs are probably already on their way. It appears to me from councillor Baldock's recent comments that the museum is a done deal and in my opinion, the referendum is just an expensive whitewash to persuade us democracy does exist in Tauranga. A minority group has decided where the museum will be sited, in this case, Cliff Rd, so that's one thing less for the rest of us to worry about. The Tauranga Moana Museum Trust ran a competition for kids to help design the coming museum - positive thinking. Pity about those citizens hoping for help getting out of caravans and garages into half-decent housing. Same for a lot of pensioners, the inevitable rise in rates will have them too busy comparing prices of jellymeat to think about spending the cost of a real meal listening to dinosaurs roar. And the hordes of motorists who battle the congested and chaotic roads on a daily basis don't need to be placated by a cohesive roading plan. The winners in all this will be the pro-museum buffs who will finally be able to prance around in the belief that having a museum will put this small town on the same page as cities like Wellington and Auckland. (Abridged)
MV Newman
Arataki
