Today’s busy environment of home and work life, there seems increasing pressure to rush.  A modern trait, the age old saying “more haste less speed” comes to mind.

The three MOST common crashes in the UK are

  1. Rear end shunts
  2. Not giving priority at a junction/roundabout
  3. Loss of directional control.

rush2

I feel ALL of these common crashes could be directly linked to rushing.

As a driver the expectation to rush is one encouraged by other drivers, and the traffic conditions around us; most journeys seem to have to aim that “I do do this journey as fast as I can”.  Ask yourself what benefits it could have by taking it easier?

  • Use less fuel
  • Calmer more relaxed drive
  • Safer
  • Less wear and tear on your car – brakes, accelerator, tyres
  • Less likely to crash
  • More time to make better decisions on gaps at junctions

OK, so these are fairly obvious, but also the need to rush is usually only in the mind!  How many traffic lights, roundabouts and junctions are on your journey?  How likely is it that you will need to wait/stop or pause at each one for other traffic or a red light?  If this is the case as nine times out of ten it will be – try to take it easier to the next stop, and timing to get to the junction/traffic lights when they are going to be on green, not red.  Effectively this has reduced the time sitting in traffic, and made it safer and more economical.

Many drivers in a rush get closer to the car ahead, this makes no sense to me?  leaving MUCH longer gaps means that

  • You can see more passed the car ahead to overtake if necessary
  • You are less likely to crash into the back of someone else (most common crash)
  • It is not as necessary to brake harshly – reducing your chances of been hit from behind too!

Generally I leave 4 seconds gap between me and the car ahead (double that in the highway code, count a stationary object as the car ahead passes then count to four so you arrive at the stationary object after that point) because it gives plenty of space to see past the car and stop gradually.  I double it to 8 seconds in the rain, and a massive gap of 20-40 seconds in ice and snow.