irrotational perambulation, for which cause I’ve settled upon the term of ‘vortiCity’

I’ve oft noted people looking down at my feet when they see me move in a form of lateral motion, akin to the strafing motion within a first-person-view computer game. The motion is probably best described as irrotational perambulation, for which cause I’ve settled upon the term of ‘vortiCity’ to label it. In turning, the body would first turn to the intended direction, then only after the actual body rotation would translation occur in the new direction. So there is a brief period of facing the ‘new’ direction, whilst walking in the ‘old’ direction – giving the appearance of slipping / gliding across a surface. This allows for greater efficiencies in navigating right angle corners. The motion is parallel to the corners, rather than a certain radius of curvature with overshoot, as is the norm. This perambulatory anomaly is quite different from that of walking downstairs backward as I tend to do, but that and step-malfunction-recovery I’ll leave as a topic for another time!

Can any road really be "safe"?

“Road safety” is a term used to represent “Road traffic safety”. However, I feel it to be a misnomer as it suggests the possibility of a ‘safe road’, which is non-existent.

A road of itself is neither safe nor unsafe. It is the manner in which the road is used that creates danger, or lack of safety.

For example, a road with a particularly sharp bend is neither safe nor unsafe. If however a driver decides to navigate such a road at high velocity, they are likely to come a cropper, almost certainly in fact. This is not due to any fault with the road, but the driver choosing the incorrect velocity to get around the bend.

A road is neither good or bad. It just is. It is up to the driver to accept it, and drive accordingly to the road conditions.

Surely an icy road is unsafe?

No. An icy road is simply less tolerant of driver error. A vehicle with the correct tyres driven with good skill would have no difficulty, but an uprepared driver with unprepared vehicle would be a different matter.