Taiwanese driver featured on New Zealand TV for 'alarmingly bad driving'

台灣駕駛因“危險駕駛”而登上紐西蘭電視台

Newlywed couple forced to return rental car, take bus for rest of honeymoon due to numerous traffic violations


TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — A Taiwanese tourist was included in a New Zealand TV program for violating several of the country's traffic laws within 13 minutes.

In an episode of Greenstone's show "Caught! in Action" released on Tuesday (June 6) based on an incident originally broadcast in 2020, a newlywed couple had just arrived in New Zealand for their honeymoon and had just set out on the road in a rented car. Within 13 minutes, members of the public filed reports of infractions committed by the male driver.

The show followed the Southern Police District's Constable Dwight Grieve as he pulled over the Taiwanese couple in a rented blue Toyota hatchback, which he had been following due to reports by other motorists of "alarmingly bad driving." In the video, Grieve can be seen flashing his lights, sounding his siren, and blasting a voice recording ordering the driver to pull over in several different languages.

The driver fails to pull over despite the sirens and verbal commands. Meanwhile, a camper van pulls over, but the Toyota driver continues on.

After driving for 10 km despite the lights and sirens, the motorist finally pulls over to the shoulder of the road. The police officer then told the driver to choose another location because he had parked at a corner and asked him to follow his lead.

However, the driver then pulled out in front of an approaching car rather than letting the vehicle pass first before getting back on the road. Once at a safe location, the motorist informed the officer that it was his first day in New Zealand and he had only been driving for "13 minutes."

The officer said that there had been complaints he had been driving too slow and passing other cars in an unsafe way. He explained that in New Zealand, when driving slowly, the driver must pull over to allow cars approaching from behind to pass, and when passing other vehicles, there must be 100 meters of "clear road in front of you."

When asked how police stop cars in Taiwan, the driver gestured at the patrol car's flashing lights. Grieve said that "I've got lots of flashing lights," but the driver said that he was confused because he was not sure what he had done wrong.

Grieve then received a full report of the driver's "litany of lucky mistakes." When he entered the roundabouts at Queenstown Airport, he stopped in the middle of a roundabout, he cut across a roundabout, cut across the corner of another, and again stopped in the middle of another roundabout.

In one instance, a car was nearly hit by a large truck. Based on these infractions, Grieve notified the rental car company that the vehicle would be returned immediately, the couple would be taken to Queenstown, and a bus would be arranged for the newlyweds for the rest of their trip.

Such was the extent of the driver's traffic violations that they could have been arrested and sent to court. However, the officer decided not to press any charges and instead warned the driver of his infractions, while another police officer drove the couple to a nearby bus station.