Every driver wants to be as safe as possible when they drive. However, with how many accidents are caused by driver error, it’s important to learn the right ways to stay safe. As a result, defensive driving techniques have gained much more attention in recent years. These techniques can help a lot in avoiding accidents…
Defensive Driving: Why It Helps
Improve self-discipline
Self-discipline is an important part of defensive driving. When you drive, you’ll have a lot of things that might distract you. For example, this could be your phone, or music playing from the radio. These distractions can cause you to lose focus, and potentially get into an accident. Getting angry at another driver’s poor driving can also cause you to lose your focus.
As a result, driving defensively means knowing how to avoid these distractions. For instance, you can ensure that your phone is either off or on silent and away from you so you can’t be distracted. You can also make sure your music is at a low enough level to not distract you. As for getting upset, it’s important to learn ways to keep your cool when behind the wheel.
Be wary of other drivers
Ideally, you’d like to be able to count on your fellow drivers to do the right thing when driving. However, this isn’t always the case, as seen in accidents caused by texting, speeding, DUI, etc. Due to this, another important part of defensive driving is learning to be cautious of your fellow drivers on the road.
Always be scanning the road ahead of you, and constantly check your mirrors. That way, you know what to expect, as well as what’s going on around you. Give drivers ahead of you plenty of space too, especially the aggressive or distracted ones. Try to also have a backup plan in mind, such as for if the driver ahead of you slams on the breaks, or if someone runs a red light.
Learning the techniques
Defensive driving is something that you can easily learn, if you take a course for them. For teen drivers especially, these courses are always a good idea. Taking one of these courses can really help you see the ways in which you can make your driving experience safer.