By Dave B
Here is one we all find troublesome. The famous, or infamous, four-way stop sign. Prominently displayed from the bar seats at the Hardware Store where people drink, eat, and watch headstrong or unconcerned drivers navigate into downtown alongside 200 other drivers, all coming off the ferry to discover the Island, and trying not to crash at 10 mph into a fellow pedestrian, dog walker, family function or jaywalker.
So, let’s look at the Washington State Driver’s Guide. How should octagonal red sign that says “STOP” on it to be interpreted? I believe, in my infinite wisdom, it means to stop your vehicle from going any further.
OK, so far so good. Now what? Ohhh, now we have to decide who goes first, since four cars came to a stop at the same time. I have a bumper sticker on my car that says “You go, no you go” because Vashon residents tend to be courteous and let other cars go first. My wife chastised me because it was supposed to go on the FRONT of the car, but to me that is silly. Who reads bumper stickers on the FRONT of your car unless you are about to get run over?
Back to the dilemma. Who goes first? I believe it is the person who got to said stop sign first or the person on your right. But is everyone at the intersection on your right at some point? Sooooo, what do we do?
Let’s look at this logically. Who needs to get to Island Queen for s chocolate sundae? They go first. Second, who has the biggest truck? Next, let’s let the oldest person or a veteran go out of respect. Lastly, it would be me.
BUT, what if everyone in the area is young, has a Prius or Outback, and is not hungry? How about just common sense? Not everyone got to the stop sign at EXACTLY the same time, really. Who goes first is who REALLY got there first. No yelling, no hand gestures, just a calm breath and let the one on the right go – ha ha!
If you see a green truck with a shell on it, let him go first. He will thank you!
