Driving resolutions for 2018
Besides our typical New Year’s resolutions like exercising or quitting smoking, let’s all aim to drive better this year too! Since driving is likely the riskiest behavior we undertake that we have the most control over, doesn’t it make sense to do our best? Some suggestions follow.
Drive for yourself and others. Otherwise known as defensive driving, a good driver must accommodate mistakes by others. The main thing to acknowledge is that other drivers will frequently commit errors.
Advance realization of this will not only help prepare you to make allowances for bad driving, but should lessen your chances of becoming vengeful over it.
Creating and maintaining space around your vehicle offers a “niche” or margin of safety, which might allow you the time and room to avoid having a collision due to the erratic or unexpected action of another driver.
Don’t tailgate. It compromises safety for both vehicles. Additionally, it’s one of the most common igniters of road rage. If that’s not incentive enough to discontinue the habit, consider that most drivers will actually slow down when followed too closely. So, if your motive in riding someone’s bumper is to speed them up, it will likely have the opposite effect, and further inhibit your progress. Finally, you are at fault in all cases when driving the trailing vehicle in a rear end smashup.
Stay right, except to pass. Since this is the top pet peeve of nearly every driver I speak with, I wonder who all of the perpetrators are. I suspect many who complain are also guilty at times.
So, once more, on multi lane roadways, if you are not overtaking another vehicle, you only have a couple of other reasons to be driving in the left-most lane. Besides while making a pass, you can legally use the left lane if you are going to make a left turn reasonably soon, or if you are moving left to allow a merge from the right. On the freeway, you are also obligated to move momentarily to the left lane to give clearance to emergency vehicles displaying flashing lights parked at the right-hand shoulder.
Those are the only legitimate times or reasons to occupy the left-hand lane of roadway having multiple lanes in the same direction of travel. If you are continuously there in the absence of one of those requisites, you are in violation and subject to ticketing.
Don’t talk or text. Phone conversations dilute cognitive awareness, and texting takes your eyes off of the road. Neither of those conditions is conducive to successful driving, especially during an emergency.
Given the amount of time devoted to personal electronic devices, it is tempting to bring the habit into your automobile. Unless you are on a deserted highway with no chance of a deer or dog crossing you path — and I’m not sure such a place exists — stop your vehicle at a safe haven to take a call or catch up on texting.
Signal your intentions. Resolve to use your turn signals to announce intended turns at approximately 100 feet in advance of initiating the turn. And please do so in the proper order: signal, brake, turn. Too many drivers neglect to signal, and too many get the order wrong by braking first, then signaling at the same time as making their turn.
Have a rewarding driving experience in 2018 — in fact, make it a resolution!
Readers may contact Bill Love via e-mail at precisiondriving@spokesman.com.
