Although the heading of my article last month was entirely fitting, I feel a bit of explaining is necessary, especially as the non-Maltese owner of the Shogun that featured with the article has written complaining that permission should have been sought before publishing the picture of his car.

I would like to clarify that at no pont in my article did I mention any driver by sex or name.

The article simply gave a glimpse of my opinion on the matter following my experience as a Transport Malta driving examiner.

Factually, except for a few exceptions, I stress that drivers with fewer than five years behind the wheel should take a test in the SUV or MPV that they intend to drive, in exactly the same way that drivers have to take an upgrade test if they pass the initial exam in an automatic and then wish to drive a car with a conventional stick change.

From my other role as a traffic management consultant, I could probably name more than a hundred village roads and even country lanes that would be too restricted to take the larger SUV/MPVs.

Luckily, for the rest of us, most owners are what were loosely described as Sloan Rangers, people sticking to the wider roads and boulevards, except when blocking traffic on the dreaded ‘school runs’.

There is, of course, another consideration and that relates to speed and accidents. Many of our towns and villages are still restricted to 35 km/h. At this speed, if a normal small family car strikes a pedestrian, there is a very real chance that the pedestrian will live.

Recent research has, however, shown that if the same pedestrian is struck by 3,000 kg of a large SUV/MPV going at the same speed, the chance of survival is vastly reduced.

One also has to remember that the actual speed at the point of impact may be considerably less because of the brakes on contemporary cars.

SUV/MPVs however, because of their greater mass, will not slow down as quickly, and so the problem gets refined even further.

We know that many insecure drivers purchase these immensely anti-social vehicles to feel ‘safe’.

Please bear a thought for anyone or anything that you may strike. A lifetime is a long time to regret an incident which may have happened in a split second, but due to the size of the vehicle involved, may have had an entirely disproportionate effect on the occupants of the car, motorbike or pedestrian that was hit. “Not my fault” will do nothing for long-term trauma and regret.

Malta and Gozo are luckily still safe places for children, but do remember that children under 12 have almost no ability of judging the speed of approaching vehicles.

It is great that parents teach their offspring to use pedestrian or pelican crossings, but even so, I have found that in certain towns it’s actually safer for an adult to cross anywhere other than on a crossing.

21st September Road, Naxxar, and Independence Avenue, Mosta, are two roads I have had to jump for my life to avoid being thumped by approaching vehicles finding it difficult to stop.

Winter fades, wet roads become a memory. However, dry summer roads may well be slippery. Drive well within your ability.