You may have heard that maintaining a safe distance is vital to avoid rear-end collisions or even chain collisions, but there are other advantages to it that you may not have considered.
In today’s blog, we will explain how to keep a safe distance with other drivers and why it is important to do so.
Advantages of Keeping a Safe Distance on the Road
1. First of all, when you maintain a safe distance, you are able to see what the other drivers ahead of you are doing and have enough time to react and anticipate any potential dangers.
2. Similarly, by keeping a certain distance with other vehicles, the other drivers are able to see and anticipate your actions.
3. Maintaining a safe distance can also help you enjoy a smooth ride and even save fuel.
4. Another reason to keep a safe distance with other drivers is to protect your windshield, since the vehicles ahead of you might eject debris and stones which could damage it.
5. Keeping a safe distance is particularly important on wet or icy roads, since the adhesion between the tyre and the road is poorer and the braking distance is extended.
6. Also, if you drive too close to the vehicle ahead of you, you’ll need to adapt to their speed, be more aware of their actions, and the risk of a rear-end collision will increase.
For that reason, we have prepared some tips that might be useful to avoid the above-mentioned problems.
a. The 3-second Rule
As we mentioned in previous blogs, the 3 to 4-second rule can prevent a rear-end collision and give you enough time to react to any sudden changes in traffic.
Most drivers keep a distance of just one second; however, not everyone has the same reflexes or is experienced enough to properly react when the driver ahead of them brakes abruptly.
That’s why you should leave a distance of at least three seconds.
If you don’t know how to calculate that distance, here is a trick that might help you: watch as the vehicle ahead passes a fixed point on the road, such as an overpass, sign, fence, or other marker, and start counting the seconds it takes to reach the same spot on the road.
If you reach the marker before you have counted the correct number of seconds, you are following too closely.
2. Be Especially Cautious on Wet or Slippery Roads
For instance, the road becomes particularly dangerous during the first 10 to 15 minutes of rain.
That’s why you should slow your speed when the road is wet or icy, since it can take up to ten times longer than usual to stop.
This means that you should further increase your following distance to be able to adapt to the weather conditions.
3. Be Wary of Tailgaters
You also need to be careful with other vehicles driving too closely behind you.
Avoid accelerating or braking and don’t try speeding up to increase the following distance.
Instead, increase your following distance from the vehicle in front and maintain a safe speed. You can also try to change lanes and let the tailgater pass.
Besides driving tips, Tayaria can help keep your car and tyres in tip-top condition.
If you need some expert advice, make use of our dealer locator tool and get in touch with your local Tayaria outlet today.
