Busy.
That word describes many people within our society these days. We often
have so many things to do that we’re often running late. Sometimes, we
may not be as late as we think we are or the things we do may not take
as long as we think they do. If that’s the case, we really need to
change how we do things that may affect us or other drivers.
While I was recently at a shopping area, I noticed many shopping
carts left sitting throughout the entire parking lot. Those that used
those carts decided to leave them behind where their vehicles were
parked after they were finished with them. Why wouldn’t hey put them
away in the cart area? Was it too much trouble for them? Were they lazy?
Were they running late? I even saw a shopping cart left
beside the sectioned off cart area. Why couldn’t they place the cart
into the cart area? Was it really going to take that much extra time?
Here’s the problem with leaving the carts throughout the parking lot;
they can roll and hit into the sides of parked vehicles. We all know
how annoyed we get when we find any type of dents and dings on our
vehicle. By placing the carts where they belong, you’re actually helping
your fellow drivers to help avoid those annoying dings.
The added problem happens if the shopping cart ends up behind a
vehicle, below the window line of the minivan or SUV. If the driver in
that vehicle looks out of the rear window they may not see the shopping
cart. Walking around your vehicle prior to entering it is always a good
idea regardless of where you are as it allows you to spot any problems
before entering your vehicle. However, most drivers won’t do that so if
you leave a shopping cart in the parking area, it adds to the risk of
someone hitting it.
I was retraining a licensed driver who was under the belief that he
could see most things around his vehicle because he was very tall and
sat high in his minivan. To show him this isn’t the case, I walked away
from the vehicle on all four sides with him in the driver’s seat and
dropped pylons when he saw my feet. When he got out of the vehicle to
see the space he was shocked to see it so large. I then asked him to get
back into the driver’s seat and look out the rear window again. This
time, I bent over at the rear hatch as if I was tying my shoe and he
couldn’t see me. This became a real eye opener for this driver.
So there’s really two issues about those wandering shopping carts;
leaving them behind other vehicles may cause those drivers to hit them
and damage their vehicle and if someone leaves them behind
your parked vehicle,
you
could hit them. Oh, and shopping carts are far less important than
noticing people so maybe doing a walk around is a good idea for all
drivers. Maybe some of those drivers never thought about the
consequences of their laziness or being in a hurry. Or perhaps they were
putting the cart before the horse-power.
