Amongst all drivers observation can usually be improved, without good observation the information needed to make safe decisions whilst driving is seriously impaired.

observation

A good way of judging how good your own observation is to give yourself a mark out of ten under the following categories:

  • Far Distance (miles ahead, the horizon, the furthest possible place you can see, church spires, hills/woodland, urban high risers, furthest traffic lights in the far distance)
  • Middle Distance (within a mile)
  • Near Distance (within metres)
  • Sides (pavements, side roads, looking into junctions)
  • Behind (left mirror, right mirror, rear view mirror and rear window checks)

Even though I am a RoSPA Gold Driver, I would not mark myself 10/10 on all categories, this is because I can always improve my observation.

It is also worth trying to consider looking:

  • Over
  • Under
  • Through
  • At what you cannot see…..

When most incidents occur, most drivers say “I did not see them”…..  Sometimes this could be because the driver did not look, or something impaired their vision.  Some ways of improving this is to:

  • Keep up to date with observation – things change quickly on the road
  • Avoid making assumptions that nothing will appear, even cul-de-sacs have driveways, pedestrians and vehicles.
  • Ensure all windows are clear and free of ice, mist or dirt.
  • Blind spots are a real danger to the driver; these include blind spots in all mirrors, areas around the A B and C pillars, behind other vehicles or buildings.
  • Distractions like mobiles, i pods, fatigue, stress/anger, peer pressure and drugs/alcohol.  It is human to look at interesting things, but that can distract you from more important situations.  Prioritise what you are looking at so that the important situations are given your attention.

Anticipation is the next stage after looking, this means looking at what you can and can’t see and ask what could reasonably expect to happen next.  This allows the driver to prepare for the worst.

Ask yourself if you are an optimistic or pessimistic driver?

Been optimistic (expecting the best) means the driver is ill prepared for the imminent situation.  An example of this is where traffic lights have been on green for a while, it would be reasonable to expect them to change to red, so by approaching with care it helps the drivers behind to be warned that it is likely you need to stop, as well as been smoother when you do stop.    Been a pessimistic driver and dealing with situations to prevent a collision is called defensive driving.

Looking at the three most common crashes in the UK (according to Roadcraft the Police Driving Manual)

  • Rear End Shunts
  • Drivers not giving priority (pulling out in front of you)
  • Loss of directional control (skidding on bends, going around roundabouts quickly)

All of these could be linked into the drivers’ observational downfall.

Rear end shunts could be caused by a moment’s lack of concentration (on observation), equally the vehicle in front may not have checked behind before slowing down, or not anticipated very well.  Of course leaving a larger gap offers a larger room for error.

In terms of giving priority to other drivers often this is causes by lack of good observation at a junction, or indeed judging the speed of other vehicles.  It is key to remember here that speed is more difficult to judge with one look; i.e. if you look at a photograph it is not possible to judge speed (one look) but with a movie (a collection of images) it becomes more easy to judge.  This is because Speed = Distance divided by Time; by looking once only distance not time can be judged, so looking twice or more gives the opportunity for time to be judged, and therefore speed.

Another common crash can be where vehicles reverse in car parks, this can be particularly hazardous without excellent rearward observation.

Try commentary driving this is where comments are made on what you can or cannot see, it can be a good way of improving your observations.  Try and include the following:

  • What you are looking at and why?
  • What you are doing about the situation ahead.
  • Other vehicles/Signals from others (e.g. Brake lights)
  • Road Markings
  • Road Signs/Traffic Lights
  • Pedestrians
  • Cyclists/Motorbikes
  • Lowered Kerbs/Junctions/Driveways
  • Animals (Horses, Cows, Deer etc…)
  • Emergency Vehicles
  • Buses/Railway lines/Trams