We teach in defensive driving class that ABS brakes have been around a while, but they have had a “close to zero effect on fatal crashes involvements” (The Long-Term Effects of ABS in Passenger Cars and LTVs, National Highway Safety Administration Report, DOT HS811 182, 2009). The problem is that drivers have not learned what …
Defensive Driving Tip #68: Don’t “Pump” ABS Brakes! Read More »
This may come as a surprise if you’re not a parent, but We teach in our defensive driving class that kids aren’t born with perfectly formed and completed bodies! Their skeletal structure, for one thing, isn’t fully grown and “put together” at birth. Their bones aren’t as supportive and rigid as yours — and crash …
Defensive Driving Tip #67: Keep Your Child Safe in the Center Read More »
We teach in our defensive driving class that many injuries are caused by loose objects that “fly” in a collision. When your vehicle suffers a sudden deceleration (as in a collision), the only things that stop with it, at least immediately, are the ones that are secured somehow. When the vehicle decelerates, a loose object …
Defensive Driving Tip #66: Secure Loose Objects! Read More »
We teach in our defensive driving class that the bed of a pick-up truck is for CARGO, not people. If you care about your passengers (or your pets), do not allow them to ride in the back of your truck. You may be the best driver in the world — but you are not always …
Defensive Driving Tip #65: Don’t Ride in Pickup Truck Beds! Read More »
We teach in our defensive driving class that one part of the human body that doesn’t heal quickly (or at all) if injured? Forty to fifty percent of brain injuries occur in vehicular mishaps and even in cases of minor injuries, the long term effects can be permanent and life-altering. For kids, 20% of head …
We teach in our defensive driving class that in any crash, there are three collisions to worry about. The first collision is when your vehicle hits something – another vehicle, a tree, an embankment, etc. The second collision is when an occupant’s body is thrown against the vehicle structure. The third collision is when a …
Defensive Driving Tip #63: Seat Belts and Air Bags Go Together! Read More »
We teach in our defensive driving class that the “technical” term for an Interstate, a freeway, highway, or an expressway is a “controlled-access highway.” The elements behind the safety and speed of travel on these highways are common direction, common speed, and no intersections to choke traffic or create conflicts. Simply stated, everyone should be …
Defensive Driving Tip #62: Don’t Cross a Freeway Median! Read More »
This one seems like such a no-brainer, but you see vehicles stopped on controlled-access highways all the time. You may have no other choice if you have an emergency, but otherwise, take an off-ramp and find a parking lot to get out of traffic and off the road for a minute or two, to read …
Defensive Driving Tip #61: Never Stop on a Freeway! Read More »
In defensive driving class we talk about when you have a choice whether to use a controlled access roadway (or freeway, expressway, etc), or a city boulevard, you should choose the controlled access road, because your potential for a collision is less. A freeway has no intersections, and, with few exceptions, traffic is typically moving …
Defensive Driving Tip #60: Use the Center Lane for Safety Read More »
This is a simple defensive driving tip, but it is one that many drivers don’t think about. When you are driving down a city street, and you see a pedestrian crossing the roadway ahead of you, you know you must yield to them; but what about the pedestrians that you cannot see? We teach in …
Defensive Driving Tip #59: Beware of Stopped Vehicles at Crosswalks Read More »
