Creating a space for your vehicle while on the road is a must for vehicular safety. Appropriate spacing that you put between your car and the others allows you to have enough time to react in case the driver ahead of you makes sudden and unexpected maneuvers. Additionally, making sure that no one is tailgating you avoids the risk of your vehicle being hit from behind. Keeping to one lane also creates adequate space on your vehicle’s sides.
The general rule is that there should be at least one car’s length of distance between your car and the automobiles behind and in front of you. However, if you are finding it difficult to estimate this distance, then you can opt to count the seconds you are behind the vehicle ahead of you. Two seconds of driving distance at about 60 mph allows you more than 150 feet of space. If you are driving on the highway and traffic is very light, it would be best to put as much distance as possible, even more than what is recommended because this will leave you ample time and space to react. Aside from that, drivers on the highway are faster and this means that their movements are harder to guess.
When it is raining or snowing and the road is quite slippery, it would be to your best interest if you leave a lot of space for you vehicle. Just in case you suddenly brake and you skid, there are less chances that you would be hitting another car. Ice can be very dangerous and will definitely make the distance that you need for stopping increase.
You can even maintain a safe distance during heavy traffic. In fact, it is a must because there are actually more accidents that occur during traffic jams. Weaving in and out of lanes is very risky and might cause you to hit other vehicles whose drivers have slow reactions or are not paying attention. Plus, there will be more things that you would not be able to see from your blind spots like motorcycles or pedestrians that move in and out of lanes. There will likely be drivers that would cut you off; if this happens, let them through. Better to be late than create a bigger problem by getting into an accident. Just imagine the time you will have to spend filing for insurance and the inconvenience of not being able to use your car until it has been fixed.
Moreover, leaving space between you and the vehicle allows you space to maneuver in case the car in front of you conks out or gets into an accident. You will be able to swerve to either side and pass through.
The last tip is to always pay attention not only to your driving but the way the vehicles around you are moving. You are bound to find space since the tendency of other drivers is to get ahead of each other or simply to get to wherever they are off to. You, on the other hand, would rather put your safety first.
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