Car accidents are the leading cause of death for people in both
developed and less developed countries. Automobile technology may have
improved by leaps and bounds in terms of ensuring road safety and
convenience but because of human error, the grim statistics on vehicular
accidents continue to pile up. The best way to reduce the risk of being
involved in an accident then is to practice safe driving behaviors.
Here are 10 Driving Tips that can help bring you and your passengers to
your intended destination in one piece.
Don’t drive when drunk. Drunk driving is the No.1
cause of car accidents, the reason it is a crime in many cities. Even at
low blood-alcohol levels, intoxication reduces reaction time and
coordination and lowers inhibitions, which can cause drivers to make
foolish choices. At higher levels, alcohol causes blurred or double
vision and even loss of consciousness. If you’ve been drinking and
needed to drive, ask a sober friend for a ride or call a cab. The mild
inconvenience of taking a cab home is nothing compared to the disastrous
consequences of driving drunk.
Avoid speeding. Research shows that for every mile per
hour you drive on the speedometer, the likelihood of your being in an
accident increases by four to five percent (source: http://www.nhtsa.gov/people/injury/research/pub/hs809012.html
).At higher speeds, the risk increases even more. According to the
National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, speeding is one of the
most prevalent factors contributing to traffic crashes.
Don’t use phones. In the U.S., studies place at
2,600 the deaths caused yearly by the practice of using cell phones
while driving. The main reason is that working a cell phone behind the
wheel can delay reaction times by as much as 20 percent.
Don’t nod off. A study conducted by Virginia Tech
reported that 20 percent of all accidents have sleepiness as a
contributing factor. If a driver is tired enough to actually fall asleep
while driving, the results are predictable. Even on a relatively
straight highway, a sleeping driver will eventually drift off the road.
So get a good night’s sleep before going on a long drive.
Wear seat belts. Seat belts save lives during
crashes. Worn properly, they prevent you from being thrown around the
inside of a crashing vehicle or, worse, thrown through the windshield
and flung completely out of the vehicle. The numbers are much scarier
for young drivers and passengers: A staggering 70 percent of fatal crash
victims between the ages of 13 and 15 weren’t wearing seat belts.
Exercise caution in bad weather. If you’re driving
through fog, heavy rain, a snow storm or on icy roads, be extra
cautious. If you’re driving through weather conditions you don’t know
well, consider delegating driving duties to someone who does, if
possible. If the weather worsens, just find a safe place to wait out the
storm. Drivers who can’t see the road will be looking for other cars to
follow along the highway. When they see your lights, they’ll drive
toward you and may not realize you’re not moving in time to avoid a
collision.
Keep your car well-maintained. Vehicle maintenance
isn’t just an important way to extend your car’s life but also a major
safety issue. Many maintenance issues are addressed by state-mandated
vehicle inspections. If your car is unsafe, the inspecting mechanic will
let you know what you need to do to fix it. However, there could be a
year or more between inspections, so car owners need to be aware of any
potential safety issues and get them repaired before they lead to an
accident.
For more information about Defensive Driving Courses, please visit the National Traffic Safety Institute at www.ntsi.com, call us at (866) 346-3283, or email us at corporate@ntsi.com.
 |
| Images: Goodtodrive |
With the advent of mobile phone technology that sees everyone owning
even more than one unit of a cellular phone at a time comes a new menace
to road safety and human lives. Text messaging or using a mobile phone
while driving now accounts for most car crashes that used to be
attributed solely to driving under the influence or DUI.
In the US, for example, official statistics show that someone gets
killed every 53 minutes in a drunk driving crash, which translates to 27
fatalities every day. Every 90 seconds, someone is also injured in a
drunk driving incident. The US National Highway Traffic Safety
Administration estimated that alcohol-related vehicular collisions
caused 17,941 deaths in 2006 alone. This represented a high 40 percent
of total traffic deaths in the US.
The grim statistics on road accidents resulting from calling or
taking a call on a mobile phone while driving are not far behind.
Research conducted by the NHTSA asserts that drivers who use either a
handheld or hands-free cellphone are four times more likely to get into
a crash serious enough to cause injury or death. At any given moment
during the daylight hours, over 800,000 vehicles in the US are being
driven by someone using a cellphone, according to that research. It says
both hand-held and hands-free mobile phones impair driving, with no
significant difference in this degree of impairment.
Using a mobile phone while driving can be distracting. It makes no
difference whether you are talking on the phone, texting, playing games
or taking photos. Studies have found that using a mobile phone while
driving slows reaction times and interferes with a driver’s perception
skills to increase the chances of figuring in a crash.
It is as dangerous as DUI to use a mobile phone while driving because
it hampers decision making, for one. Deciding when it is safe to turn
in traffic is a complex task. When your attention is divided, this
affects your judgment and you may fail to choose a safe gap in tight
situations. When making a decision to turn across oncoming traffic, you
also tend not to consider the environmental conditions such as when it
is raining or the roads are slippery. If you don’t make safe turns in
time you’re likely to crash.
Your reaction is also slower and less controlled. You generally react
slower when using a mobile phone, particularly when you’re deep in
conversation. So you may take longer to respond to traffic signals or
completely miss them. During a mobile phone call your brake reaction
time is slower, and you stop with more force and less control which
results in shorter stopping distances available between yourself and the
car in front.
When using a phone while driving, you’re more likely to wander out of
your lane even on a straight road with light traffic. You also tend
to spend less time checking your mirrors and what’s going on around you
which can affect your ability to monitor and negotiate traffic safely.
If talking on a mobile while driving is an utmost necessity, it may
be wise to keep the conversation short and peremptory. Don’t engage in
complex, emotional or romantic conversations. Tell the person on the
other end that you are driving and may have to end the call. End the
call if it is distracting you from driving and never ever make calls in
heavy traffic, poor road conditions or bad weather.
For more information about Defensive Driving Course, please visit National Traffic and Safety Institute website at www.ntsi.com, call us at (866) 346-3283 or email us at corporate@ntsi.com
