Defensive Driving Managing An Intersection
This article is about defensive driving managing an intersection. You need a defensive driving procedure to not become an intersection crash statistic. There is a lot of distracted driving going on. You have never needed a defensive driving strategy more. Never consider a green light a free pass through the intersection.
T bone accident
As a bus driver, I was taught the following defensive driving procedure for handling an intersection crossing. This procedure covers the three interactions of an intersection, traveling through the intersection, making a turn inside the intersection(left turn), or making a right turn as you enter the intersection.
There are three things you need to do at an intersection to drive defensively. But first, watch the one minute video below. Then read the three steps below and watch the video again. See if you agree that this accident could have been avoided had the driver been driving defensively.
One, Clear the intersection
The first thing you need to do before entering the intersection danger zone(defined as oncoming and cross-traffic) is to clear it. What is clearing the intersection?
Clearing the intersection means that you verify that any vehicles that can cross your path are stopped or are slowing down. Before you enter the intersection clear the traffic to the left(these are the first cars that will hit you if they don’t stop). Then as you scan to the right check for vehicles that may turn(left turn lanes) into your path. Then finish your clearing with any oncoming vehicles from the right lanes. If vehicles have already stopped at the limit lines of every lane your clearing job scan for that direction of traffic is complete.
40 percent of the estimated 5,811,000 crashes that occurred in the United States in 2008 were intersection-related crashes.
Crash Factors in Intersection-Related Crashes, U.S. Department of Transportation, NHTSA
Two, verify moving vehicles are slowing
Verify that any oncoming traffic is actually slowing down. How do you do that? I use the rotation of the rims(not the tires, the rims)as an indicator. Let me explain. Judging how fast a car is approaching is hard to do in the actual time(seconds) you have available. But if you look at the rims you will see that most vehicles have spoke like rims or hubcaps that make it easy to see the rotational speed change as it slows down.
If you can’t see the rim rotation I look at the next best indicator, the front of the car. If the driver is applying the brakes the nose of the car will drop down and the tail of the car will rise slightly.
Three, coast thru the intersection
This is the most important part of not becoming an intersection statistic. If you are approaching the intersection and the light turns green in your direction lift your foot off the gas pedal and hover it over the brake pedal(don’t put your foot on the pedal) before you enter the intersection. I start doing this as my vehicle gets even with the start of the left turn lane(in the above video that happens at timestamp 5 seconds, then a full 6 seconds later the vehicle hits the left turning car).
While you are clearing the intersection and verifying that the oncoming vehicles are slowing down hover that foot over the brake pedal. By doing so you can quickly jam on those brakes if you see a problem vehicle coming your way. Don’t count on the other vehicle seeing you. They haven’t recognized that they are charging a red light, they’re definitely not thinking about you.
This procedure will also work on any intersection where you have stopped at the limit lines and are waiting for your green light. Clear and verify the oncoming traffic before entering the intersection. Once you clear the intersection and are out of the intersection danger zone its back to normal driving because you are not going to become an intersection statistic.
(Car Crash 7-1-18 2252 | Charles Edward Miller | Flickr)
(Car Crash 7-1-18 2252 | Charles Edward Miller | Flickr)
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