WHAT IS WRONG WITH K53?

I have no doubt that the principles of the K53, if practiced properly, would make us better drivers.
To this end, I agree with Werner van Aswegen that it is the lack of putting the K53 into practice that leads to the poor driving we see every day.

However, some of the practices advocated in the K53 distract a driver's attention away from the direction of travel.
For example, the requirement to look left and right over your shoulder to eliminate blind spots creates one very critical new blind spot - right in front of you!
It slows your time to react to a change in the driving conditions in your immediate zone of travel.
Not looking where you are going is the principal cause of having an accident.

"But I didn't see him, officer!
I was following the K53 procedure, looking through the back window to see if somebody was next to me before I turned right.
I didn't see him in front of me.
It's not my fault! He must have been riding too fast anyway..."

I don't buy that. It is just bad driving, pure and simple.
We bikers seem to just be the ones who bear the cost of K53 driving.

Agree on the over-the-top observation. Firstly because it is excessive, people are inclined to avoid doing it, and end up cutting most of observation out. Then, something like observation, or any key element of defensive driving is not policed in the same way as things like talking on the cell phone, wearing your seatbelt, having the right number plate, etc. It seems that the only consequence of not observing properly is that you kill people... Even then, I think it is more "expensive" to just ride over a red traffic light...

Yes, we cannot rely on other people to observe us, so we have to do it for both.

The K53 cannot be blamed for the tipe of drivers on public roads. In my opinion the K53 simply tests if you can focus on a number of things at the same time, while under pressure. If you pass this test it means that you are capable of driving a car or riding a bike on public roads. It does not guarantee or certify that you are going to do so like a civilised human being! The strong arm of the law must ensure this, but nowadays the "strong" (read weak) arm of the law can be twisted with a “spot fine” of as little as R20!!!