Ottawa·TRAFFIC

Pedestrians, puddles and inattentive drivers don't mix

A real issue with this dusting of snow during a thaw is newly-obscured puddles.

Just enough snow has fallen to cover up some road ponds

A car passes through a large puddle of rain water in North Vancouver on Dec. 31, 2019. (Maggie MacPherson/CBC)

Good morning commuters!

There's just enough fresh snow out there to cover all the dog pee and make it look temporarily pretty.

Not really enough to make driving treacherous, at least not on a Friday.

There will be visibility issues in the early going due to salty spray, but a real issue is newly-obscured puddles.

Keep your speed down around pedestrians.

I got this note from listener April:

"I was wondering if you could remind people during melts and thaws to please be aware of pedestrians trapped on sidewalks as they rip through puddles and spray everyone.

It seems that some drivers are completely oblivious to the fact that they are soaking people as they drive down the street in their own bubble."

I don't mind at all.

Have a great day!

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Doug Hempstead

CBC Ottawa's traffic specialist

Doug Hempstead is CBC Ottawa's traffic specialist and can be heard on CBC Radio's Ottawa Morning and All In A Day. Originally from the Ottawa Valley, Doug is an award-winning journalist with more than 20 years of experience in the region covering all types of news. You can reach him when he's on air at 613-288-6900. Tweet him at @cbcotttraffic or @DougHempstead. His e-mail is doug.hempstead@cbc.ca.