The Driving Doctor: Hang back for safety

Aug 30, 2005 (United Press International via COMTEX) -- One of the easiest ways to keep yourself safe on the road is to stay out of dangerous situations.

Stay out of dangerous situations and you won't have to make any split-second, life-or-death decisions. You won't have to execute precise moves perfectly to escape collision or injury, and you won't have to subject yourself or your passengers to terrifying moments.

Sure, it sounds obvious, but if you spend as much time as I do watching the behavior of drivers, you'll see it is exactly what so many people do not do.

The most common habit among motorists is a continual attempt to get ahead -- even if that attempt turns out to be pointless. Drivers engage in aggressive passing maneuvers. They snake from lane to lane. They push through cramped spaces between vehicles. They jump their place in line at merges. They tailgate. They pull out suddenly from stalled queues. They wait until the last possible moment to exit, even if it means crossing over several lanes at once.

Race-car drivers employ some of those same techniques, at much higher speeds, but they are experienced, highly trained professionals and they are paid to compete. They also know the limits of a given situation and their vehicles. Crashes do occur, but they are surprisingly infrequent, given the velocities and proximities involved.

The difference between the racetrack and the highway is very few ordinary drivers have received more than basic training. They might think they can handle critical driving situations, but too often they can't, and their failure results in smashed and bent metal at least and fatalities at worst.

The key to becoming a better, smarter driver is to hang back from competitive traffic packs. It's quite easy. It just means sticking to the speed limit and staying to the right. Do so and you will see almost everyone else push past you in tight bunches, while you gain the advantages of extra space and time.

Space and time are the keys. With enough of those commodities you gain the ability to choose your moves carefully -- casually even. This is essential for safety in high-speed traffic situations. Stay back and away from the packs, and chances are you won't have to worry about somebody making a misjudgment or an unwise move.

This strategy offers another positive aspect: economy.

For years, the automakers have been pushing expensive, high-performance features in their ads. These features, such as powerful engines, anti-lock brakes, precision steering and racing suspension, are supposed to keep you safe by making your vehicle responsive in high-speed or heavy-traffic situations.

It's become a self-fulfilling prophecy. The more performance options on a vehicle, the greater the temptation to use them -- as in merge-jumping, speeding, tailgating, lane weaving and getting into tight spots.

Avoid all these situations in the first place, and you no longer need the high-priced doodads.

Yes, it can be exhilarating to drive a well-tuned vehicle along a winding roadway. Yes, it's challenging and fun to execute curves and dips and hills. The problem is, in this country, fewer and fewer roads present opportunities where you can roam at will.

Most of the time, you're locked in heavy traffic moving at too high a speed. This is why, almost every day in every metropolitan area, the major arteries come to a standstill, because someone in that traffic has made an incorrect or unwise move.

So, train yourself to hang back. Trade in the exhilaration for a safety margin.

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Phil Berardelli is the author of "The Driving Challenge: Dare to be Safer and Happier on the Road." Comments and questions about this column are welcome. E-mail: sciencemail@upi.com