Keep a safe following distance

Rear crashes are the most reported crash in all of North America. It is also one of the easiest to avoid. The blame is often placed on the driver in front but it is the tailgater who is usually at fault.

Why do people tailgate? The most common reason is the person is in a hurry. Drivers could be distracted and do not even realize that they have gotten too close to the vehicle ahead.

Sometimes our brain will trick us into thinking we are going a different speed than what we are actually going.

This sensation usually occurs with a sudden change in speed in a very short period of time like entering or exiting freeways.

Some drivers are very aggressive and try to intimidate the driver ahead to make them go faster.

Keeping more space in front can help keep out of a collision in several ways. At speeds up to 70 kph, under ideal conditions, we should be a least two seconds back from the vehicle in front.

We should use time and not car lengths or distance between light poles because as we go faster we need more space to get stopped. The two seconds following distance will grow as we go faster.

The car length space will not. To judge this space correctly, when the vehicle’s rear bumper in front of us passes a reference begin counting seconds until your front bumper reaches the same reference.

At city speeds, if you get to two or more you would be a safe distance back.

Staying at a safe following distance gives us much better visibility past the vehicles in front so we can see problems they could be facing much sooner.

We can then control the drivers behind by covering our brake, activating our brake lights and allowing us to adjust our speed over a longer space.

Also, by looking farther ahead as opposed to staring at the vehicle ahead, we are less likely to develop highway hypnosis.

This loss of attention to our driving could allow us to get too close to the vehicle ahead. If we lose the focus on our driving, we are more likely to crash.

At freeway speeds we need at least three seconds back from the vehicle in front. If there are poor traction or visibility problems we need to add an additional two or three seconds for each problem, depending on our speed.

We can control tailgaters from behind. Many people feel the best way to handle the aggressive or distracted driver from behind is to speed up. However, they will likely just match your speed making the situation worse.

The best way to handle a tailgater would be to gradually slow and put their safe following distance in front of you. This way if we need to brake hard we can control the tailgater over a longer space in front.

Many drivers think that because it is going to be the driver behind them that will be at fault, they do not worry about being hit from behind.

However, you can be injured along with all the other consequences of the collision you may need to deal with.

If you get pushed into the vehicle ahead and do damage, you will likely be found responsible for this damage.

Let’s keep a safe following distance, and help keep everyone around us safe.

Greg Robar is owner and instructor of Young Drivers in the Valley and South Shore.