Driving
TipsPerhaps this doesn’t seem to fit into the “security” category, but let me assure you that after 35 years of driving in Detroit—and virtually every other major city in the U.S.—I have a pretty good idea of what irritates other drivers. Today, you cannot afford to make another driver angry. You can get shot, run over, beaten up or any number of other very unpleasant things. These are by far the worst driver problems:
Turn signals are not a thing of the past. Virtually every state requires that you signal your intention to turn. This provides the driver behind you a chance to slow down. About the very worst thing you can do is to slam on your brakes in the middle of a busy street, then put on your turn signal and turn. This move is only for complete idiots. Even worse is slamming on the brakes and not signaling. Use your signals!
Nothing has changed since I took driver education in 1962. You should still keep one car length between you and the car ahead of you for every 10 mph you are driving. That isn’t always practical on today’s high-speed freeways, but even if traffic is moving along at 65 mph, don’t presume the guy in front of you won’t have to stop suddenly. Keep as much distance as possible. If someone cuts in front of you, so be it. He probably won’t get home any faster than you will. Tailgating is just downright dangerous…and if you hit someone, no matter the circumstances, it is your fault!
No matter what you might believe, the left-hand land of a multi-lane freeway is NOT a driving lane; it is a passing lane. The only time you should be driving in it is to pass another vehicle. Someone driving 75 mph on a freeway (where the speed limit is 65) is going to get very very frustrated when you are hogging the left-hand lane and they cannot pass—especially when there is no one ahead of you. If you are going to drive the speed limit (a rarity in these days), then stay out of the passing lane!! Period!
The street I live on has no stop signs on the part that runs between two major north-south streets. After much complaining to the police chief, I finally won a minor concession. He had Yield signs posted at every intersection on the cross streets. In theory, it sounds good. In reality, it doesn’t work at all. I never drive the surface streets in my town without stopping at every intersection. Two elderly women were driving up the side street closest to my home awhile back, didn’t pay any attention to the Yield sign, suddenly realized another car was coming, went to slam on the brakes and hit the gas instead in her panic. She ended up on my next-door neighbor’s porch. Watch the intersections. If it says Yield, then do so. [The chief’s contention is that if the city installed stop signs on our one-mile stretch of street, people would stop but then they would speed up between signs. Unfortunately, that argument is false. Instead, people simply drive down this quiet residential, 25 mph street at 35-50 mph…figuring the other drivers will yield.]
If something happens while you’re driving that you dislike (e.g., a car cutting you off, someone in the passing lane you cannot get by, etc.), don’t get angry. It just isn’t worth it. People have been shot over such incidents. I flashed my lights at someone once (the signal to pull over and let me pass) on the freeway—a very innocent move. When I exited, so did she, and the woman driving got out of her car and started ranting and raving at me. Her behavior was inexcusable, of course, and I just drove away. But she could just as easily walked up to me with a gun…and that dog you see on my home page wouldn’t have been able to help me then.
If you have an emergency, such as a flat tire or the car stops running, get onto the shoulder of the highway and Stay in Your Vehicle with the Doors Locked! In the Detroit area just last week, someone pulled up behind such a vehicle, got out and offered to help the woman driving. She got out of the car, and he dragged her into his SUV and raped her! Folks…it’s dangerous out there. Trust me. Stay in the car! If you have a phone, you can call for help. If you don’t, before long a State Police officer will stop. Yes, there have been more good Samaritans than bad. But do you want to take the risk?
