[TITLE: HOW TO PREVENT BEING REAR-ENDED IN TRAFFIC :: DEFENSIVE DRIVING]
Hi there smart drivers, Rick for Smart Drive Test
talking to you today about skills and techniques
that you could put in place
to prevent yourself being rear-ended.
I was looking at Facebook last week
and there was a campaign against distracted driving
and the campaign showed this awful traffic crash
of a lorry driver, a tractor trailer driving on the motorway
in the UK, careening down the motorway
and plowed into a line of queued up traffic
that was waiting to exit the motorway.
It had been determined, because there was a camera
in the cab of the truck,
that the driver had been changing the music on his phone.
As well, it was caught on dash cam.
Somebody had a rear-facing dash cam
and the lorry was careening down the motorway
and didn't even see the line of queued traffic
and didn't even apply the brakes
and simply plowed into the back
and four children were killed in the crash
which as a parent myself and those of you who are parents,
we realize that this makes us absolutely sick
because we would do anything to protect our children.
A few years ago there was a video that we used to show
in driver training courses called Sitting Duck
and it was about the dangers of sitting along highways
and sitting along freeways
and one of the things that we teach new drivers
for the purposes of a road test
is one of the skills that you should keep with you
for the remainder of your driving career
and will help you to be not rear-ended
when you're sitting in a queue or sitting in traffic.
So that's what we're gonna talk to you today
about skills and techniques that you can put in place
to guard against being rear-ended.
Stick around, we'll be right back with that information.
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Hi there smart drivers, Rick for Smart Drive Test
talking to you today about skills and strategies
that you can put in place
to prevent yourself being rear-ended.
One of the things that we teach new drivers
for the purposes of taking a road test
is that when they stop in traffic behind other vehicles
they have to be able to see the tires
of the vehicle in front of them making clear contact
with the pavement, as you can see here in the image.
The reason that we teach them that
is that that leaves about one vehicle length
between you and the vehicle in front of you
and there are many reasons why we do that.
One of the most important reasons we do that
is so that if the vehicle in front of you breaks down
or the traffic becomes congested or you have to move
you don't have to back up in traffic
to get around that vehicle.
You can simply drive around that vehicle.
That's one of the most prominent reasons
why we teach new drivers that.
Now, I would encourage you if you've got your license
and you are driving to put this skill back into place.
Stay back from the vehicle when you stop in traffic.
Don't drive right up to it
because it also is a measure against you being rear-ended
because if you're at the end of the queue,
at the end of the line of the traffic
you can keep your eye in the rear view mirror
and be looking for the traffic approaching from behind.
Because if the vehicle's approaching from behind
or not slowing down or stopping
that space in front of you is often enough space
that if you start moving forward
and tapping your brakes to flash your break lights
or activate your four-way flashers
that's gonna get the attention of the vehicle behind you
and oftentimes that space, that one vehicle space
if you move up, that's enough for that vehicle,
that driver behind you to get his or her vehicle stopped
before they plow into the back end of you.
Now, if you're on the freeway
and you see somebody coming up behind you in the mirrors
and they're not slowing down,
you can simply drive out and around the vehicle
and get out of the way
and you're probably not going to be rear-ended.
So it's a very good technique to continue to keep in place
after you get your license.
Now, if you're stopped on a freeway
and I have been stopped on freeways and highways
and motorways and interstates,
if there's a queue of traffic and it is congested
and you come up, stay back a fair distance.
I would even three, four, maybe five car lengths stay back
and activate your four-way flashers.
The flashing light of your four-way flashers
draws in our attention
because our vision is attracted to light and movement
and flashing lights on vehicles get our attention.
Especially stopped vehicles on freeways
where vehicles are traveling at high speeds,
you need to get the attention of the vehicles behind you
and indicate to them that you are coming to a stop
on a high-speed freeway highway or interstate.
So that is one of the ways
that you can prevent yourself being rear-ended.
And when you're sitting in traffic,
if you're on a highway or some other place
like this awful incident in the UK, be on high alert.
If you're anywhere on a freeway,
sitting on the side of the road, you're in a queue,
you're behind stopped traffic and congestion
and there isn't any vehicles,
there aren't any vehicles behind you, be on high alert
because you are in a precarious situation there
and unfortunately sometimes this happens
and there's awful stories
and many stories that I've heard of crashes over the years.
One of the most prominent ones was some years ago on the 401
which is a freeway that runs east/west through Ontario,
the providence of Ontario here in Canada,
there was a police officer that had a tractor trailer unit
pulled over on the side of the freeway
and the officer was standing up on the steps of the truck
talking to the driver of the truck
and another truck came down the freeway,
somehow ended up off on the shoulder of the road,
plowed into the back of the cruiser
and the back of the truck and killed both the police officer
and the driver in the truck.
So any time that you're on an interstate, a freeway,
a motorway and you're stopped, be (scoffs)
very afraid, be on very high alert
because you are in a dangerous position.
So that's some techniques and skills
that you can put in place
to prevent yourself being rear-ended.
Quick review of skills and techniques
that you can put in place
to prevent yourself being rear-ended.
We teach new drivers to stay back one vehicle length.
We stop in traffic so that you can see the tires
of the vehicle in front of you making clear contact
with the pavement.
That way you've got enough room.
If you're in back of the queue,
whether you're on a freeway or you're in town or wherever,
you should always be lookin' in that rear view mirror,
the center mirror up at the front and your two wing mirrors
to make sure
that the traffic coming up behind you is stopped.
Now in the incident of the lorry driver
plowing into the back of the queue,
if you're at the back of the queue
and you see some juggernaut coming up behind you
that's not going to stop, get on the horn.
Get on the horn, drive around the traffic,
drive into the ditch, do whatever you need to do
to get your vehicle out of the path of that vehicle.
Because if they hit you straight on,
they're gonna plow you straight forward.
If you get the vehicle onto a bit of an angle or whatnot
you're going to decrease the amount of impact
and you may survive the crash
whereas if you are plowed straight into,
you're probably not gonna survive the crash.
So try and get your vehicle off somehow
anywhere that you can reduce the head-on impact
of vehicles coming up behind you.
And if you are in the queue
and you see he vehicle coming up behind you
and you know that vehicle isn't gonna stop,
the vehicles in front of you need to be warned too
so that everybody can move forward.
And lastly, just as an aside,
if everybody stayed back one vehicle length
at the intersection with the traffic,
all the traffic could move off together,
whereas when they are right close together,
you have to sorta stop and start to sorta move off
and the traffic doesn't move off from the light
as fast as possible.
So that's another benefit
of staying back one vehicle length.
Question for my smart drivers.
Have you been rear-ended?
What was your experience of being rear-ended
in a traffic crash?
Leave a comment down in the comments section there.
All that helps out the new drivers with their license,
learning how to drive,
and be defensive and protect themselves
when driving their vehicle.
I'm Rick with Smart Drive Test.
Thanks very much for watching.
If you like what you see here, share it, subscribe,
leave a comment down in the comments section.
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Check out all the videos here on the channel.
If you're working towards a license
or starting your career as a truck or bus driver,
lots of great information here.
As well, head over to the website.
You can find great information over there
and online courses that you can purchase.
As well, we're working on Air Brake Simplified.
It's a manual to get your CDL air brakes
and fulfill that requirement for earning your CDL license.
It's a great book.
It's broken down into good information that you need to know
to drive a truck successfully
and the specific information that you need
to pass the CDL license
and a hundred multiple choice questions.
Thanks again for watching.
Good luck on your road test and remember,
pick the best answer not necessarily the right answer.
Have a great day, bye now.
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