Driving is fun and exhilarating. The beautiful thing about driving is that you can slide into autopilot once you get accustomed to it. You can relate to this assertion if you’ve been driving for over ten years. Driving comes naturally to you. You don’t have to deliberately think about when to change the gear or match the brake. Your body moves almost automatically. That’s the power of consistency.
Despite the reality of being more comfortable with driving, it is essential to stick to driving rules and keep an updated license. This is essential for road safety. Don’t get to that point where you get so comfortable behind the wheel that you forget the basic road safety rules.
Perhaps you’re not in the know what the significant tenets of road safety entail. That’s what this article entails. There are ways to drive safely and have fun at the same time.
Here are a few ways to drive safely that we all need to be reminded of frequently.
Shut Down Distraction
Driving is fun, but it is a strenuous activity. This means distractions must be minimized if safety is prioritized. You don’t want to talk on your phone while driving, doze off on the wheel, or eat or drink while driving. Take enough rest before taking to the wheel to go, or better still, order an Uber. Again, keep your phone on silent, do not disturb or cause mode. The driving mode gives your phone the information you’re driving and can send auto-responses to messages saying that you’re going. Taking a few seconds off the road to look at a new notification on your phone’s screen can lead to severe accidents. If you’ve been doing that before now and never had an accident, you’ve only been lucky. And the thing about luck is that it’s not forever, nor is it predictable.
Use your Seat Belt All the Time
The need to buckle your seatbelt cannot be overemphasized. Some individuals do it right: buckle their seatbelts before starting the car. Regardless of how long or short the distance is, with your seat belts on, you will be able to ride through the crash forces in the event of an accident. Without a seat belt on, you guessed it right. You’ll either be thrown out of the car or thrown around within the car, and that will cause serious injuries. Car crashes are sometimes unpredictable.
Avoid Substance Abuse
Alcohol is one of the most widely abused substances. This is not a health talk against alcohol. But if you drive, don’t drink alcohol while driving. Don’t take any substances that will impair your thinking and reasoning. That’s what alcohol and similar substances do. They slow down your reaction time and impair your muscle coordination. This kind of reaction is not suitable for driving as it will lead to road accidents.
Apart from alcohol, specific prescription and over-the-counter medications can interfere with everyday reasoning. Some of them, like Benadryl, can cause drowsiness. Any drug that would negatively impact your mental awareness should be avoided when driving.
Mental Alertness
There are moments when you are not mentally alert. Such moments are when you should stay away from driving. Don’t drive if you are sleep-deprived. Sleep deprivation automatically reduces your mental alertness. What your body needs at that phase is sleep, not hands-on a wheel. Also, if your standard sleep time is 8 p.m. and you want to take a night trip, refrain from driving once it results in 8 p.m. Our bodies have a circadian rhythm that regulates our sleep-wake cycle. If you disrupt this cycle by staying awake when you should sleep, your mental alertness will also be impacted, and driving is a no-no.
While driving, especially for long-distance journeys, you should place a premium on your safety to avoid being a victim of any of the common examples of truck accidents.
Life First, Less Speed
Drive at a similar speed to that of those around you. Stay in your lane and navigate the road at the right pace. Observe speed limits and be consistently conscious of your speedometer. If you haven’t driven a route in months, read the road signs when driving. There might be changes to speed limits or road safety signs. When driving, it’s your safety first before speed. If other cars are going at a rate beyond what you can keep up with, move to the right lane on the road. That’s a safer road lane where you can maintain a good speed that is considered safe. Follow the traffic by keeping your pace, but don’t be pressured by other drivers on the road.
Conclusion
There are numerous examples of truck accidents today. Many are avoidable if drivers are humble and wise enough to follow the road code and safety guidelines. We have done a refresher in this article about how to drive safely. Each point is equally important and should not be taken with levity.
