Section 6 - SAFETY INSIDE AND OUTSIDE THE VEHICLE The accident you never have is the only one you ever want. It seems that sometimes there is nothing so rare as "common sense." If you have it, you understand that practicing safety procedures is that "ounce of prevention" that is worth a "pound of cure." This section covers safety inside the vehicle, outside the vehicle, and under the hood. SAFETY INSIDE THE VEHICLE Seat Belts The use of seat belts is not just common sense. The law requires all motorists in the front seat and their passengers to wear seat belts! Legally, drivers must fasten their seat belt. They may even be legally responsible to ensure that everyone riding in the front fastens his or her seat belt. It is the law that all children under 6 years old are required to be in a approved child seat or booster seat that is properly fastened. Children under the age of 16 are required to wear seat belts at all times, no matter where they sit. The law says that if the police stop a driver for any reason and the driver or any of the passengers required to is not wearing a seat belt, the following consequences can occur: * If the driver is not wearing a seat belt, he or she can be issued a ticket. * If a driver has a passenger 16 years old or older who possesses a driver's license, the driver may get a ticket and so may the passenger. If the passenger is 16 or older and does not yet have a license, he or she could have eligibility to obtain a license impaired. Tell your budding drivers that if they do not buckle up, they can have their license eligibility delayed; and they will buckle up - in a hurry! * If a passenger is below 16 years of age, it is the responsibility of the driver to enforce the seat belt law. If a passenger below 16 years of age is not wearing his seat belt, the driver of the vehicle will receive a ticket. Urge passengers to buckle up. If you do not, the law says it is your fault; and it could cost you about $50! Did You Know? At least one court in Virginia has ruled that failure for a parent to properly restrain a child constitutes child abuse if the child is injured in an accident. DMV Image Common (Ridiculous) Reasons for Not Wearing Seat Belts Any of these six reasons entitles a person to a lifetime membership in what we call "The Stupid Club": "I'm a good driver, and I'm careful." Yep, that and fifty cents will get you a cup of coffee. It is amazing how many drivers justify breaking the law by speeding, driving recklessly, or other dangerous acts simply on the grounds that they are skilled drivers. So what? It is the unskilled driver who will kill you. Even if you are an "Indy quality" driver, not everyone is. Being skilled is not enough. A driver must be smart, also. Driving smart means recognizing that other people represent a danger to you just as you could represent a danger to them. What difference does it make how skilled a driver you are if a drunk driver runs a red light? What good will all your skill do if a daydreaming driver makes a sudden lane change, and you are driving too fast to maneuver out of harm's way? All of us have a one-in-three chance of being in a serious accident in our driving lifetime - and very possibly, it will not be our fault. If and when that happens, wouldn't you want to have as much protection as possible. Buckle up, Racecar Driver. "I'm a strong dude. I can brace myself." Dream on. What would happen if a person had to catch a 300-pound barbell dropped on him from 20 feet in the air? Think you could do it? No, of course, you couldn't; no one could. Well, that is too bad as that is the approximate force of impact from a collision at thirty miles an hour. Now, if we really think about it, if people cannot brace themselves at thirty miles an hour, imagine the force of impact at higher speeds. Even trying to brace yourself from the force of a collision at ten miles an hour would be like lying on your back and having someone drop 300 pounds on you from two feet. Buckle up, Superman. "If there is a fire, I don't want to be trapped." If people really want to get out quickly, have them leave their seat belt off. In an impact, they will have a good chance of being ejected from the vehicle. That will get them out quickly. Problem is, people are 25 times more likely to be injured seriously than if they had left their seat belt on and stayed in the vehicle. Consider this: There is only a 1% chance of fire on impact and a 99% chance of not having a fire. Also, without a seat belt, people are much more likely to hit their heads. How fast can someone leave a burning vehicle when he or she is unconscious? By wearing your seat belt, you increase the likelihood of being conscious and capable of helping yourself and any others who may be in the vehicle to escape danger. Buckle up, Smokey the Bear. "What if the car goes into the water?" People should endanger their lives 9,999 times for that one chance in 10,000 that they will go in the drink? Besides, the same arguments for fire apply for water. Buckle up, Jacques Cousteau. "I do buckle up - most of the time." Then your survival potential is better - most of the time. So, is there any special reason you do not want your survival potential to be better - all of the time? Have you ever heard of a S.W.A.T. officer wearing his bulletproof vest - most of the time? He wears it all of the time. It takes only one bullet to kill you, and it takes only one vehicle accident to kill you. Get in the car, close the door, put the key in the ignition, put on your seat belt, start the car, and then finally take off. Once you establish a routine, it will seem strange not to wear your seat belt. Get in the habit, Abbott. "I'm only going to the store." Over one-third of all traffic fatalities occur within a 25-mile radius of a driver's home. This makes sense as we do most of our driving in that range. However, these fatalities also occur because we take the familiar more for granted and tend to be more inconsistent with our safety on short trips. Any driver can be killed going less than 40 miles per hour. Buckle up, Shopper. By the way, the only person who survived the accident in which Princess Diana was killed was her bodyguard. He was the only one in the car wearing a seat belt! No matter how carefully you drive, statistics show that it is extremely likely that you will be involved in at least one traffic accident during your lifetime and that there will be a one in three chance that it will be serious one. When that accident does occur, it may be your first as well as your last. Your chances of being injured are surprisingly high. In the average traffic accident, about one person in three will be injured or killed. Since there is no way you or your passengers can completely eliminate the possibility of being involved in an accident, it is essential to increase your chances for survival by always fastening your seat belts...and pay no attention to those stories about people who died because they were wearing their seat belts. The odds of your dying in an accident because you wear your seat belt are minuscule, teeny, tiny, basically non-existent - compared to the odds of your dying in an accident because you did not wear your seat belt. In case of a crash or sudden stop, seat belts keep you and your passengers from being thrown into the windshield or dashboard. They also keep you from being thrown out of the vehicle. Held in place behind the wheel, drivers have a much better chance of regaining control than they would if they were thrown out or buffeted around the car. Hundreds of studies focusing on the effects of serious crashes have shown that drivers and passengers who are belted in are more likely to survive than those not wearing their seat belts. According to the National Center for Statistics & Analysis of the U.S. Department of Transportation National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, Traffic Safety Facts 2005--Occupant Protection: Research has found that lap/shoulder safety belts, when used, reduce the risk of fatal injury to front-seat passenger car occupants by 45 percent and the risk of moderate-to-critical injury by 50 percent...Ejection from the vehicle is one of the most injurious events that can happen to a person in a crash. In fatal crashes in 2005, 75 percent of passenger vehicle occupants who were totally ejected from the vehicle were killed. Safety belts are effective in preventing total ejections: only 1 percent of the occupants reported to have been using restraints were total ejected, compared with 30 percent of the unrestrained occupants. Crashes are unpredictable. A driver has no definite control over whether one occurs or not. However, safety is predictable. You have complete control over which safety precautions you use. And if you wear your seat belts, you can predict that you will have a vastly improved chance of survival in a crash. According to NHTSA, from 1975 through 2005, it is estimated that safety belts saved 211,128 lives, including 15,632 lives saved in 2005. If all passenger vehicle occupants over age 4 wore safety belts, 20,960 lives (that is, an additional 5,328) could have been saved in 2005. Child Restraints The first mandatory child restraint use law was implemented in the State of Tennessee in 1978. Since 1985, all 50 States and the District of Columbia have had child restraint use laws in effect. These laws also cover various segments of the population. (NHTSA 2005) As of July 1, 2007, children eight (8) years old or younger must be in Virginia State approved safety seats or booster seats. When fastened according to directions, infants and toddlers in approved, crash-tested, child car seats are as close to being completely safe as it is possible to be. Small older children's safety can also be improved by having them sit on a crash-tested, raised "safety booster seat" designed to work in conjunction with a standard shoulder/lap belt. Another new law states that rear-facing infant seats, must be installed in the back seat. CLICK HERE for New Seat Belt Laws! Car crashes are the #1 preventable cause of death of children. According to the study conducted by National Center for Statistics & Analysis of the U.S. Department of Transportation National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, Traffic Safety Facts 2005 Data--Children: It is estimated that 420 children under age 5 were saved as a result of child restraint use in 2005; if all children under 5 had used child safety seats an estimated 518 lives (that is, an additional 98) could have been saved. An estimated 7,896 lives were saved by child restraints from 1975-2005. Traffic Safety Facts: Strengthening Child Passenger Safety Laws, Jan. 2006: Research on the effectiveness of child safety seats has found them to reduce fatal injury by 71 percent for infants (younger than 1 year old) and by 54 percent for toddlers (1 to 4 years old) in passenger cars. Eight out of every ten children killed in an automobile accident would have survived if their parents had properly placed them in a child safety seat. If you are a parent of an infant or toddler, that statistic alone should be all the incentive you need to rush out and purchase a child safety seat if you are not currently using one. Where can child safety seats be acquired? Approved child restraint seats can be obtained usually for a low fee from service clubs, local police departments, and other organizations. Sometimes, they are even provided free. Interested parents should check with their local Chamber of Commerce or Police Department for a list of available resources in their area. Air Bags It is becoming increasingly common for automobile manufacturers to include front and side air bags as standard equipment. In fact, The National Highway Transportation Safety Administration (NHTSA) estimates that, as of 2005, more than 160 million air-bag-equipped passenger vehicles were on the road, including 146 million with dual air bags. Air bags used in association with seat belts significantly reduce injuries and fatalities from frontal-impact collisions. Even if your vehicle has side mounted air bags, you must wear seat belts to protect you from side impacts, rollovers, and multiple-vehicle crashes. Belts and bags are a potent combination to keep you alive and uninjured in a crash. Air bags have proven to be highly effective in reducing fatalities from frontal crashes, the most prevalent fatality and injury-causing type of crash. Frontal crashes cause 64 percent of all driver and right-front passenger fatalities. NHTSA estimates that in 2005, an estimated 2,741 lives were saved by air bags. From 1987 to 2005, a total of 19,659 lives were saved. With the growth in air bag usage, the annual number of lives saved each year will continue to increase. Air bags are designed to save lives and prevent injuries by cushioning people as they move forward in a front-end crash. They keep the person's head, neck, and chest from hitting the steering wheel or dashboard. To accomplish this, an air bag must move into place quickly. The force of a deploying air bag is greatest in the first two to three inches after the air bag bursts through its cover and begins to inflate. Those two to three inches are the "risk zone." The force decreases as the air bag inflates farther. People who are very close to or in contact with the cover of a stored air bag when the air bag begins to inflate can be hit with enough force to suffer serious injury or death. There is a downside to this good news. Though air bags are saving large numbers of people in moderate- and high-speed crashes, they sometimes cause fatalities, especially to children, in lower speed crashes. The primary factor is when the person's upper body was very near the air bag when it deploys. As in the case of the children fatally injured by air bags, the key factor has also been their proximity to the air bag when it deployed. The most common reason for their proximity was failure to use seat belts. Here is what to do if your vehicle has air bags: If you are the driver, do this: Wear your seat belt and shoulder restraint. Move the seat back as far as you can and still drive safely, sitting at least 10 inches away from the air bag cover. That way, you will contact the air bag only after it has completely or almost completely inflated. The air bag will then cushion and protect you from hitting hard surfaces in the vehicle and provide a significant safety benefit, particularly in moderate to serious crashes. If you are an adult passenger, follow the same advice. If you travel with children, do this: Make sure your older child is wearing a seat belt and is sitting in the back seat whenever possible. If you have a child who uses a safety seat, do not place the child safety seat in the front seat on the passenger side! Put the safety seat and the child in the back seat. It is recommended that all children under 12 sit in the back seat. Is your vehicle a safe one? The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) was largely responsible for a new federal law in 2007 requiring dealers to post the pertinent government crash safety accident information next to the sticker price of all new cars they sell. If you would like to see how your vehicle rates for safety, visit www.safercar.gov. PROTECTING YOURSELF WHEN A COLLISION CANNOT BE AVOIDED Most drivers hit the brakes first to avoid an accident. Unless you have antilock brakes, this can lock the wheels. The car will begin skidding, making things worse. Remember that you can do three things to avoid an accident. You can stop quickly, turn, or speed up. To stop quickly, apply firm, steady pressure on the brake. If the car begins to skid, release the brake. Step on the brake again, using firm, steady pressure. Repeat this process until the car stops. NOTE: Antilock brakes must not be pumped. If you do not have time to stop, then turn. Run off the road if you have to and if there is room. Running off the road is usually better than hitting another car. Try not to brake as you turn. Sometimes, you can speed up to avoid an accident. This may work if a car is going to hit your car on the side or rear. * If you cannot avoid an accident, protect yourself as well as you can. * If you are going to be hit from the rear, be ready to brake so that you will not be pushed into another car. * If you are going to be hit from the side, brace yourself with the steering wheel. Perhaps you can keep yourself from being thrown against the side of the car. * If you are going to be hit from the front, and you are wearing a shoulder strap, use your arms and hands to protect your face. If you are not using a shoulder strap, throw yourself across the seat so that you do not hit the steering column or the windshield. SAFETY OUTSIDE THE VEHICLE In looking at safety issues outside the vehicle, we will concern ourselves with how to deal with emergency vehicles, unfamiliar driving conditions, and "the big guys." Emergency Vehicles One of those driving events that requires you to have common sense, as well as knowledge of the law, is adjusting to an emergency vehicle responding to a call. Lights, sirens, and horns all serve to warn drivers that these guys are coming in a hurry. As a driver, you have to react appropriately. What does the law require of a driver when an emergency vehicle is coming down the road? The law says for all vehicles to yield the right-of-way to any police car, fire truck, ambulance, or other emergency vehicle using its siren or horns or when it is flashing a warning light. The only exception to this law is when you are traveling on a divided road or freeway, in which case you are not required to yield if the emergency vehicle is on the other side of the road from you. If you are on an undivided road and hear the siren or horns of an emergency vehicle or see its flashing red, blue, or yellow warning light, pull over to the right and yield. It doesn't make any difference which direction the emergency vehicle is traveling, you must pull over and yield. A new bill as of July, 2002 says that if you fail to yield right-of-way or reduce your speed when approaching a stationary emergency vehicle on the highway, it will be considered a Class 1 misdemeanor violation. DMV Image If drivers are in an intersection, regardless of what the signal light indicates, they should clear the intersection, then pull over to the right and stop. If it is impossible for them to pull to the right, they should pull over as far as they can safely to the left. For example, if you are in a four-lane divided highway and cannot pull over to the right, pull as close to the divider as possible. The idea is to make a lane for the emergency vehicle in the safest manner possible. These accommodations should be performed regardless of the direction the emergency vehicle is traveling. Drivers should wait until the emergency vehicle has passed their position before resuming their travels. It is against the law to follow within 500 feet of an emergency vehicle! Driving in Unfamiliar Conditions Driving skills are like any skills you acquire: They may serve you well in one setting yet be inappropriate, or even dangerous, in another setting. The driving skills you gain by driving in an urban environment will not necessarily transfer to driving in a rural environment. And, of course, the opposite is also true. For example, a driver whose skills are based mostly on city driving decides to take a trip to the mountains or rural countryside. He or she may be ill-equipped to handle this radically different environment. Accustomed to the constant vigilance required in city driving, these drivers may experience reduced vigilance resulting in "driving ennui" or boredom from driving long stretches of road associated with rural driving. The sudden presence of a road hazard, such as a deer or domestic animal standing in the road, can come as an unexpected shock. The adjustment required to avoid such a hazard could be delayed until it is too late. DMV Image A driver must watch for unmarked farm and field driveways with slow-moving vehicles, such as pick-up trucks and tractors. A driver may also have diminished visibility due to tall crops, bushes, barns, and farmhouses. Livestock is always a potential hazard on open highways. A driver must give any livestock the right-of-way when trying to pass animals. They tend to get confused and may dart out in front of a vehicle. A two-thousand pound bull can create serious damage to a vehicle or even could cause a fatal accident. Many roads may not be properly maintained, and there may be sharp curves, bumps, and uneven surface conditions that can cause a person to lose control of his or her vehicle. Due to many unmarked shoulders, loose gravel and sand may cause a driver to skid and lose control of his or her vehicle. Small towns are full of roadside stands, gas stations, and country stores. A driver must watch for vehicular and pedestrian traffic. Meeting other vehicles on an open roadway can become a potential hazard. A driver must pay attention to oncoming cars. If there is a long line of cars coming from the other direction, he or she has to be aware of drivers from that line who may want to pass a vehicle. If the other driver ends up in the opposing lane, the first driver must slow down and warn the other driver by flashing the headlights or sounding the horn. He or she must then give the other driver room to merge back. A driver should be prepared to brake and move onto the right shoulder of the road. The same applies for vehicles that drift into the opposing lane of travel while approaching a car. If you, as a driver, end up behind a long line of cars, avoid passing them. You are risking a head-on collision with an oncoming vehicle. If the road is too narrow to drive entirely to the right of the center, the driver should honk his or her horn upon approaching any curve where the view is obstructed within a distance of 200 feet. A major problem for long, unbroken stretches of highway is "road hypnosis". This type of unfocused concentration leads to many accidents in an otherwise unthreatening situation. In a recent accident, nine people were killed when a city-driver seemingly failed to adjust to driving on long desert roads. Her van overturned when she overcorrected after a lapse of attention. Long, unbroken stretches of highway may seem safer to the average driver, and defenses are often lowered. They can be safer, but only if a driver maintains vigilance and makes the required adjustments. Curving, winding two-lane roads in mountains present another adjustment demand on drivers not accustomed to using them. Signaling distances are greater, the act of passing and being passed requires more space allowance between vehicles, and driving, in general, requires a different set of expectations. Motorists unfamiliar with these requirements create dangers for themselves and others. As a driver navigates a winding curve in the road, there is a strong outward pull on the vehicle. A driver must watch out for it, especially when the road may be slippery. Rain, mud, snow, or gravel makes a slippery road. Sometimes, a speed limit is not posted before a curve on the highway. A driver must judge how sharp the curve is and then slow down the speed if necessary. He or she must lower speed before entering the curve. Braking on a curve may cause a driver to skid. The driver should try to stay as far to the right as possible when approaching a curve. This is also a good way to prepare for an approaching vehicle that is traveling too fast and may end up in your lane. In addition, driving in high altitudes may promote overheating and vapor lock in some vehicles. Vapor lock occurs when the fuel in your vehicle vaporizes, causing your vehicle to act as if it were out of gas. This is not as common in todays vehicles due to fuel injection. But, if it should occur, usually allowing the vehicle to cool will solve this problem. Carrying extra water in the trunk is generally a good idea and will help should a driver find that his or her engine has overheated. The same kind of adjustment problem affects motorists accustomed to driving in semitropical climates when they travel to colder climates. Driving in snow and ice demands special adjustments and an understanding of how a vehicle behaves when braking and turning. As a result of reduced traction, stopping distances are increased. And when the pavement is slippery from ice or snow, turning a vehicle requires reducing the speed and beginning the turn sooner. Do not let your unfamiliarity with different climates and terrain ruin your trip. In general, when driving in unfamiliar environments, reduce your speed from its usual levels. Even if the speed limit permits higher speeds, slow down until you acquire a grasp of the different skills this new environment will demand from you, as a driver. It is a simple precaution that could save your life or the life of your loved ones. CITY DRIVING Driving in the city has its own demands. Try driving in Washington, D.C., and you will begin to realize what city driving is all about. When driving in the city, follow these important rules: Reduce Speed. There are four advantages to driving at reduced speed: * A driver will have more time to see signs and markings and be able to interpret their meaning. This will prevent you from making erratic turns, lane changes, or stops. * There are many distractions in the city. By reducing speed, a driver will have more time to analyze the information and predict what might happen. * After a driver sees a sign or danger, he or she needs a certain amount of reaction time. Again, by reducing speed, the driver will be given that important second or two. * Having that additional second or two makes it possible to carry out well-thought-out decisions, such as taking an evasive action, making a lane change, or making a safe stop. Looking Ahead of Traffic. If a driver looks ahead, he or she will be able to see important things that cannot be seen later: for example, someone getting into a parked car. In the city, 600 feet is about one block. When driving in city traffic, drivers should look at least one block ahead. He or she should look for changing traffic lights and, if the light has been green for some time, must anticipate that it will be changing to red soon. Leave enough space between the vehicle ahead and you. When another motorist makes a mistake, a driver needs time to react. As a driver, you can give yourself this time by keeping enough space between your car and the vehicles around you. Keep a "space cushion" on all sides of your car. It will give you space to brake or maneuver if you need it. This also applies for driving on the freeway. COVERING THE BRAKE, NOT RIDING IT Driving in the city requires you to be prepared to stop for unexpected actions of other drivers or pedestrians or possible emergencies. For instance, drivers should always cover their brake while driving next to parked cars; a car may pull out of a space, or someone might open the door on the traffic side. Drivers should not press on the brake. This can reduce its effectiveness. They should just have their foot ready to press. They should do the same thing when they see brake lights of other cars or when approaching signal lights. These are early warning signs for a driver to stop. CHOOSING A LANE Many roads have two or more lanes going in the same direction. Broken white lines separate these lanes. As a driver, you must choose which lane to use. Avoid jumping between lanes. Remember, changing lanes requires that you momentarily take your eyes off the road in front of you. This can create an unexpected hazard. If you can choose a lane on your side of the road, pick the smoothest lane. If you need to pass or turn left, use the left lane. When you are driving extra slowly or planning to turn off the road, stay in the right lane. VEHICULAR POSITION It is important to keep up with the flow of traffic. A driver should be sure to stay within the posted speed limits. Traveling too fast can make a car a hazard on the roadway as does traveling too slowly. A driver should always try to avoid traveling in the blind spots of other vehicles. It is always important to be careful in the city. It is likely that others will be traveling in blind spots. So, a driver must use extra caution and stay alert especially in heavy city traffic. He or she must avoid side-by-side driving and not drive in bunches. As a driver, you should always give yourself an out if an emergency should arise. dangerous speed differences CHOOSING A SAFE ROUTE Drivers should try to plan a route before driving in the city. They should avoid trying to drive in the morning and late afternoon rush hours unless it is necessary. They should know their area, stay off the main streets, and use side streets. One-way streets are safer and faster to drive on than two-way streets because usually traffic on a one-way street flows much more smoothly. SPECIAL PROBLEMS WITH CITY DRIVING Parked vehicles are notorious for blocking the view of pedestrians and cross traffic. The lane a driver's car is in may be blocked for some reason: a detour, an accident, road repair, or the lane may be merging into one. A driver must be prepared to make a lane change. By looking far, a driver will be prepared to handle this situation. SCHOOL BUSES A driver must look for stopped school buses. He or she must be prepared for children crossing the street. Newer school buses flash yellow lights when the bus is approaching a school bus stop and is about to turn on the flashing red lights. This is warning that you must prepare to stop. Flashing red lights mean that you must stop until the children have safely left the school bus, and the lights have stopped flashing. In some cases, children will be crossing the street, but whether they will cross the street or not, if the school bus driver has activated the red lights, YOU MUST STOP AND REMAIN STOPPED UNTIL THE RED LIGHTS GO OUT. DMV Many motorists make the mistake of proceeding when they see the school bus driver return to the school bus, instead of waiting until the driver has closed the bus door and turned off the red lights, and this is a very serious mistake. It is not unusual for a child to straggle behind the others while the school bus driver is escorting the group across the street. A child may drop his or her books or lunchbox while still on the curbside of the school bus out of your sight, then quickly pick up his or her property and dart after the others. If you proceed when you see the school bus driver turn around to return to the school bus, instead of waiting for the flashing red lights to go out, you could easily strike that last child as he or she darts out into the street, trying to catch up with the group, and/or strike the school bus driver as he or she attempts to prevent the child from running into your path. If you proceed before the school bus driver has returned to the school bus, closed the door and turned off the red lights, you can be cited for a misdemeanor offense, no matter how clear the roadway seemed to be at the time. That means a mandatory court appearance for you and you can't just mail in the fine and let it go at that. The school bus driver will get your license plate number, and many school bus drivers have trained their passengers to also get that number, as well as a good look at you, and they are very good at it. You can be cited later, on the strength of their observation of you alone, even though a police officer was not present to see you do it. There is no more protected group in Virginia traffic than school buses and school bus passengers. WAIT FOR THE SCHOOL BUS DRIVER TO TURN OFF THE RED LIGHTS! No other event is your signal to proceed. Only then is it safe to do so. DID YOU KNOW? When you come upon a stopped school bus with flashing red lights on an undivided road, you must stop (no matter which side of the road you are on), even if you are on a private road. If you disregard this law, you may be charged with reckless driving. BIG RIGS Some automobile drivers become irritated with those big eighteen-wheel monsters bearing down on them from behind. These drivers resent sharing the road with these huge vehicles. The next time you share the road with one of these behemoths, try to remember this fact: Most of the food you eat would not be in the market if those giants were not on the road, and many of the products you enjoy would not be available for purchase. Big rigs deliver virtually all of the food and manufactured goods in this country. While you may be driving to your job, driving is their job. And when sometimes you may be driving for pleasure, they are driving for a living. Drivers of big rigs are truly professional drivers. We all could learn much from them; but, as a driver, you definitely need to learn about them. Sharing the road with the big guys requires you to understand the special problems drivers of large trucks and buses face, and, then, with that understanding, to make adjustments in your own driving behavior. big riggers DON'T BE A PUDDLE-JUMPER Puddle-jumpers are those drivers who look for "puddles" (empty spots) in traffic, so they can jump into one in an effort to speed to their destination. They move in an out of traffic and change lanes frequently. Hoping to shave a minute or two off their driving time, they jump from puddle to puddle as they advance down the highway. Puddle-jumpers are a menace to any driver, but they are even more of an accident looking for a place to happen to big rig drivers. Remember, in a vehicular confrontation with a big rig, it is almost a sure bet that the driver of an automobile is going to lose. It takes longer to get approximately forty tons of metal moving, and it also takes longer to stop it. Professional drivers understand this and attempt to keep an appropriate distance between themselves and other vehicles. Puddle-jumpers, seeing the space created by this safety margin, consider it their personal invitation to jump into the space and move up. This can force the big rig driver to slow down rapidly, and that is not easy. Imagine that a puddle-jumper pulls into a tight space, and the big rig driver cannot slow down. This creates a good chance of a vehicular confrontation - and remember who always loses those contests. Let big rigs have their space. It is in your best interest. In fact, the law states that whenever any roadway has been divided into two or more clearly marked lanes for traffic in one direction, a vehicle shall be driven as nearly as practical entirely within a single lane and shall not be moved from the lane until such movement can be made with reasonable safety. DON'T BE A HOOVER Hoover is a mighty big dam, and there are millions of tons of water behind it. For Hoover, that is just fine since it provides a lot of electricity for miles around. When the Hoover Dam holds back millions of tons of water, there is a purpose. When a daydreaming driver meanders along slowly in front of a big guy trying to do his job, there is no worthwhile purpose for the blockage. It is, at best, discourteous and, at worst, extremely dangerous. Except when passing or otherwise permitted legally, big rig drivers are required by law to stay out of the "fast" lane on highways. They must remain in the right-hand lanes on two-lane roads and the two right-hand lanes on freeways. Because of the nature of their job, they travel at the maximum allowable speed whenever possible. When 40 tons of metal traveling at their legal maximum speed of 55 miles an hour (or more) come up on an automobile going 45, something has to give. It is similar to placing a dam on a river; everything must back up behind it. Do not catch yourself being a Hoover Dam. If you are driving in one of the designated "slow" lanes, common sense dictates that you not impede the flow of traffic. The speed of the majority of vehicles on the road determines what the "flow" is. If most vehicles on a highway are going faster than you, do not create a dam by insisting on going more slowly. Move over and let the flow go by. Then you can travel at your preferred speed. This is doubly true if you are driving more slowly than the flow of traffic in the "fast" lane. DON'T GET IN A SQUEEZE PLAY Turning a big rig is a skill all by itself. Maneuvering that mass of metal around a corner demands that the driver first swing out to the opposite side of the turn before turning back in the desired direction. Any large commercial vehicle has the same problem on turns. To turn right, for example, the driver must swing left, then back to the right. When a big guy makes a right hand turn, because he swings out to the left first, it is tempting to automobile drivers to attempt passing on the right in the space left empty. But the left-hand swing was just a temporary maneuver to set up the turn. When the rig turns back to the right, autos can get squeezed between the rig and the curb. Any guesses who wins that battle? So, the answer is never to get next to a large vehicle when it is turning. Watch for the signal; and if he is indicating a turn, stay away from either side until he completes the turn. DON'T BET HE CAN SEE YOU When stage performers are between scenes and not actually on the stage, one of the things new actors like to do is to watch audience reactions. So, they peek out from backstage. Veteran performers avoid this, knowing that "if you can see the audience, the audience can see you." There is a similar truth about driving around big guys. Big guys have blind spots, and the rule of thumb is that if you can see him in his rear view mirror, he also can see you. If you cannot see him in his rear view mirror, he cannot see you. It is a safe assumption. If you have any doubt as to whether or not the driver can see you, the rule of "assume invisibility" is always the safest choice. Basically, this rule states that when you are driving, you are invisible to other drivers. Never make a maneuver that depends on the safety of another driver seeing you, and then make the maneuver with the assumption he does see you. Unless you can make eye contact and are certain you have been seen, you must assume that you are invisible and maneuver accordingly. DMV Image DON'T TRAVEL IN TANDEM Have you ever seen fragments of tires splattered on the highway? Chances are very good that those tires came from a big guy. Large vehicles have large tires, and those tires are carrying a lot of weight. Driving on hot pavement in extremely warm weather heats the air inside those tires. Heated air expands. There is only a finite amount of room in which the air can expand. If it gets hot enough, the tire will explode. How would you like to be traveling right next to a big guy when one of those massive tires explodes? No, I wouldn't think you would. Periodically passing alongside a big rig is unavoidable, but driving alongside for any length of time is not a good idea. Do not travel in tandem with the big guys. Big rig drivers are among the safest and most courteous drivers on the road. If you are following one down a long stretch of road and want to pass, watch his taillights. He will often blink them when it is safe to pass. If you are in the fast lane and a big guy is stuck behind a Hoover Dam, let him in your lane to pass. He will move right back over as soon as he can, leaving the road clear ahead for you. Whenever you can, return the courtesy he shows to you, and he will understand that you know something about professional driving, too. UNDER THE HOOD Brakes that fail, engines freezing up from lack of oil, lights that do not work, or power steering failure -- any of these problems can be a recipe for disaster. Can you tell what they all have in common? You got it. They all could have been avoided by properly maintaining the vehicle. "An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure" is a well-known platitude. So it is with safety on the road. If drivers keep their vehicle in good repair and service it regularly and frequently, many of the dangers of the road will pass them by. Just remember, we are not talking about your car; we are talking about your life.