Community Column by Don Butt (June 2012)

Town of Mono, ON (Mono Community Policing Committee) This month  we can talk about several concerns of mine, one being the use of  special parking permits for disabled people. These permits are issued by a doctor to the person who is disabled and not to the vehicle. I constantly see young, well people using these permits. Carries a heavy fine, by the way!


Another concern that I have is tale-gating. Sometimes I feel that the driver behind me is trying to enter my trunk when he is so close that I cannot see his front bumper in my mirror. This is a very dangerous act and can and does often result in multiple vehicle crashes when something goes wrong. If the chap ahead of you has to stop to avoid someone, and his brakes are a little better than yours, or are applied harder, where do you think you will go? Following distance should be 3 car lengths on dry conditions at highway speeds or3 seconds. You can measure this by picking a marker along the road and counting one thousand and one, one thousand and two, etc. If roads become wet or slippery, increase the following distance. Do this in bad visibility as well. For tractor-trailers, you must be back 75 to 80 ft. before the driver can see you in his mirrors.

Doug Annette of the Oakville skid control school calls this “escape space” so you can change lanes if something happens up ahead.

Safety Tip: 
Position your seat so that you have 25 cm. between your sternum and the a airbag.(This tip comes to you from Doug Annette and the Skid Control School at Oakville, ON  www.skidcontrolschool.com).

Road Watch: 
Forms are still available at :
OPP Dufferin,
Mono Plaza,
Pete’s Donuts, Mono Mills,
WDG Health Unit, Broadway, Orangeville .

We have not been able to change over to the internet yet but soon we hope!


Don Butt is currently the Public Relations and Media Contact for the Mono Community Policing Committee. If you would like more information on anything covered in Don’s Column or would like to see a topic of public interest or safety covered; post a comment below.