How to avoid car accidents
Posted by admin at 2 June 2020, at 13 : 47 PM
Car accidents have always been a concern of motorists. In fact, in the early days of motoring, the Red Flag Act was passed. This required all vehicles to travel at no greater speed than 2mph – and only while a man walked in front of the car waving a red flag. The belief was that travelling at speed would not only increase the probability of a car accident, but that the driver would experience health issues from exposure to such unnatural velocities. We’ve moved on since those days. But concerns over driver safety have remained. Let’s look at how you can avoid car accidents – but first, if you have been affected by a car accident, you may be wondering about your options.
Don’t reduce your speed below the speed limit
There is a mistaken belief that slowing down to a speed that is below the speed limit will reduce the risk of accident or injury. However, where you are travelling at a low speed, you may in fact present a last-minute obstacle to drivers who are familiar with the roads and don’t expect to alter their speed. In essence, you could surprise other drivers by ‘appearing’ in the road where they were expecting the road to be clear, either causing a rear-end impact or resulting in the car behind having to swerve and risk the safety of other road users and pedestrians.
Don’t tailgate
If the car in front needs to hit the brakes for any reason, an insufficient stopping distance between their vehicle ahead and your vehicle behind will almost certainly result in a car accident. Remember, when travelling at speed (70mph), a stopping distance of 315 ft is required in order to brake in time to avoid a sudden blockage in the road. This is equal to the length of 24 average cars. When travelling at lower speeds of 30mph – 40 mph try to leave a stopping distance of around 75 ft to 118ft, which is equivalent to 6 – 9 car lengths. This will give you adequate time to both recognise that you need to brake and have to time slow the vehicle down.
Common sense says …
Travelling at the speed limit and staying a safe stopping distance from the car in front will help to reduce your chances of being involved in a car accident. But staying focused is down to you. In order to stay focused, avoid using handheld devices while driving and avoid eating or drinking. Even smoking can distract you from the road ahead.