Sharon Buck Encounters a Very Bad Driver On I-95

I had mentioned this yesterday on Facebook but it bears repeating.

As I was driving north on I-95 headed to my part-time job in Waterville, I was following a black 4-door Volkswagen. Seeing it swerve in front of me a few times and then almost going off the road after it hit the rumble strip I KNEW I had to get away from it.

What happened next SHOCKED ME!

I had to speed to get past the man because I wasn't going to deal with watching him crash in front of me and possibly involving me in the crash. As I was passing him, I looked to see who it was. I mean, who wouldn't want to know who the person was that was driving so erratically?

The man, possibly 45 or so, heavy with glasses, WAS READING A BOOK! He was literally FLIPPING PAGES! Head down, totally engrossed in his literature!  Never even KNEW I passed him!

What the heck???

We are ALL guilty of not always paying attention...whether it be fiddling with the radio (which should ALWAYS be tuned to B98.5...ha ha ha), changing the cd or answering the phone when it rings. We ALL do something to put ourselves in danger when we drive. But THIS was UNBELIEVABLE!

WHO in their RIGHT MIND would risk not only their own life but the travelers on the highway like that?

There were comments that I should have reported him. I just didn't think about it. I was more worried about getting out of that situation safely. I didn't want to make a quick judgement.  I was thinking it was a little old man who was driving and I didn't want to get him in trouble.

I contacted Nate Hood, a police officer for the Lewiston Police Department, and asked if I call 911 and report him, what happens?

He said "Dispatch might send someone out if they are in the area to check it out". It's probably hard to do. You can give the description and license plate but traffic keeps moving. It must be hard to track them down.

Please, sir, whomever you are, PLEASE STOP READING WHILE DRIVING! You are putting lives at risk! Everyone, please take caution on the roads. Put down the phones and everything else and concentrate on driving! There are people's lives at stake, adults AND children!