Distracted Driving: Dangerous Driving Tactics

Distracted Driving is the act of taking your eyes, hands, and/or mind off of the mission at hand while driving. Distracted Driving is a leading cause of vehicular accidents. Taking your eyes off of the road for even a few seconds could cost you. Being inattentive while driving can cause you to brake suddenly, veer off of the road, or veer into oncoming traffic. These situations are extremely dangerous when driving. You are not the only one on the road.

Distractions:

When you adjust your radio dial or pickup your cell phone you are taking your eyes off of the road. It may only be a few seconds, but think about this; if you take your eyes off of the road for a few seconds and the person coming the opposite direction takes his/her eyes off of the road doing the exact same thing, you are creating a hazardous situation. Stay attentive and be cautious of other drivers on the road. You can only control your own actions.

There are thousands of distractions when driving and this evil is looking for you to be negligent for just a split second. This evil feeds off of your inability to concentrate while driving. Be careful, the smallest of disruptions could cause you to lose control. Controlling your emotions and actions could save a life. Defensive driving is a part of what you need. If you see someone coming into your lane, you have time to react. However, if you are picking something up from the floor of your vehicle when that other car is traveling into your lane, by the time you look up you may not have the time to react.

Reaction time is pertinent when trying to minimize your risks of an accident. From the time you see a hazardous condition to the time it takes for you to react is called your reaction time. If your eyes are off the road, then your reaction time is cut in half. You cannot react to something you cannot see. Realizing your faults in driving, then minimizing them will help you drive safe and reduce your likeliness to be involved in a vehicular accident.

Tips to Avoid the Hazards:

Some hazardous conditions are texting while driving, changing the radio station, talking on the cell phone, site-seeing, or eating when driving. These items can be minimized by following these tips.

Cell Phone Use – Turn your cell phone on silent or turn it off when driving. If you must have your cell phone on, pull off to the side of the road out of traffic right-of-way and answer it.

Tuning the Radio – Put it on your favorite channel and leave it. Tell your passenger to change it for you.

Site-Seeing – If you glanced at something you want to see, pull of to the side of the road to look. If it is a vehicular accident, ignore it. Keep your eyes on the road and the vehicle ahead of you.

Eating while driving– This is something you should never do. After you pick up your food through the drive-thru, pull into a parking space, then eat. Even waiting till you reach your destination could save a horrible situation from happening.

Drive Safe: Avoid the Distractions

The reason you are driving is for one reason only; get from point A to point B SAFELY. Remember that you are not alone on the road. Distractions are everywhere. They can be lurking in your back seat, beside you, outside of your car, or in another vehicle. Decrease the distractions around you that you can control. Help yourself and others become a better driver. Do not take your eyes off of the road, hands off of the wheel, and keep your mind in control of the task at hand. Distracted Driving is a huge culprit of vehicle accident statistics and even the government is trying to stop it. They are placing laws into place to help minimize individuals using their handheld devices when driving on the roadway. Do your part, get the word out.