Cars and effect

Every day, over one million vehicles circulate on the M-30 orbital motorway in Madrid, where accidents happen at an average rate of three to four every 24 hours. Considering the very high speeds involved, myriad distractions and the possibility of mechanical failure at any given moment, we can only conclude from these statistics that people are, in general, very safe drivers.

In a couple of weeks' time, I'll be in the UK, taking a car from Lancashire to Cornwall, which is a trip of about five or six hours apparently. So far, so not-very-interesting. However, the thing is, I haven't driven a car for well over 15 years and even then, it was from Malaga to Marbella - a much shorter distance, in a different country with different rules and on the opposite side of the road. The last time I drove on the left, it might as well have been on the back of a horse pulling a carriage.

This morning, then, when I read about a proposed 200-euro fine for the incorrect use of car sun visors here in Spain (short of whacking a nagging back-seat driver over the head with one, it's hard to imagine what that is exactly), I did wonder if we haven't got our priorities a little skew whiff. In a nutshell, a chap can climb back behind the wheel of a car for a lengthy drive after decades, no questions asked, while a professional taxi driver spotted with their sun visor tilted at slightly the wrong angle might get significantly penalised. That seems a bit odd.

It is, of course, very difficult for the authorities to find a balance in all of this and, in general, the rules and regulations of the road are pretty well thought out, even (or especially?) that one here in Spain that requires anyone who wears glasses to carry a spare pair in case of loss or breakage. After all, not everything that might cause an accident can be legislated for - squabbling children, squabbling adults, errant animals, errant adults, half-witted sat navs, half-witted... well, you get the gist.

Every time I see even a minor accident, it reminds me just how rare they actually are considering the sheer volume of traffic and the speeds and distances involved, which is something we can all be grateful for.

Anyway, I've decided that the trickiest part of my forthcoming journey will be right at the start, getting safely out of a car park somewhere in Preston. After that it'll be like riding a bike. Well, sort of.

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