Regardless of how the weather is, night driving can be extremely hazardous. According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, 49% of fatal accidents occur at night. The night-time can pose many challenges such as: restrictions in our depth perception, color recognition, and peripheral vision. Stay safe on the road when night falls by keeping these 5 safety tips in mind.
1. Get a good night's sleep
Feeling fatigue and tired while driving through what may seem like an abyss of darkness, is the formula for a disaster waiting to happen. Sleep deprivation decreases your reaction time, judgment and decision making ability, which may play a role in behavior that can lead to fatal crashes. Hence, be well rested before going on a night time excursion. If you begin to feel sleepy, stop for a little while at a well-lit area. This is a good way to stay refreshed before heading back onto the road.
2. Don't stare directly at the lights
It can be very tempting to look at the oncoming headlights but staring will impair your night vision for a while. Instead, slow down and try to steer your eyes towards the left side of the oncoming vehicle to avoid being temporarily blinded by another driver's headlights. At times, the other vehicles may have their bright headlights on, feel free to signal them that it is impairing your vision but do not put your bright lights on just to get back at them. This would run the risk of you blinding them and increase the chances for a head-on
Plan your route carefully so that you need not try to figure out where you’re going while you should be concentrating on the road in front of you. Use your eyes to follow the yellow line on the shoulder, when drivers approach, so you aren’t blinded by their lights. Try to limit your night driving to essential trips.
Indeed, healthy eyes are always required while you are required while you are driving. Especially, when you are driving on the night, healthy eyes will help you to see more clearly and drive carefully. In the article, the author mentioned that she was uncertain the signals and slowed down when she noticed that there is a problem with her eyes. Yes, eye problems could cause several negative influences, such as, car
Driving at night is different than driving during the day. At nighttime, the visibility of surroundings is restricted to what can be lit up by the headlights on the car. This can be dangerous because there might be objects that are not illuminated which might be necessary for
Driving under the influence of alcohol not only presents a danger to the driver, but also to every other motorist or pedestrian near the roadway. Being intoxicated impairs ones judgment, vision and reaction time, all of which is critical when operating any motor vehicle. Motor vehicle accidents are the leading cause of death for Americans aged 6–27 and alcohol is a big factor to those numbers (jstor).
According to the article, 3.9% of drivers at night, drive under the influence of prescription drugs. Benzodiazepines and opiates are the most
Driver fatigue may not be illegal but it is lethal. Fatigue is a discreet killer that occurs for drivers no matter their age, their driving experience, how long the trip is or the time of day. In 2012, there were more fatigue related crashes than drink driving crashes in NSW. When someone doesn’t sleep for the previous 17 years before driving, they have an equal effect to someone who drives with a blood alcohol level of 0.05. A study by Nordbakke and Sagberg in 2007 concluded that drivers had a standard knowledge on preventative actions and the factors influencing the risk of falling asleep. But, despite this knowledge, drivers continue to drive on the road whilst tired.
As a future sleep technician, and a person who has suffered personally from the aftermath of a friend falling asleep at the wheel, the topic of "drowsy driving" is one concerns me. Studies show that there has been a significant rise in sleep-related crashes since the initiation of Maggie's Law in 2003, but only one recorded
First off, you must always be aware of your surroundings. Of course, this is common knowledge, but you would be surprised how much a dancing man in a taco costume on the side of the road can distract a driver, especially a good dancer. In other words, the driver must keep their eyes on the road. The driver should try to keep their main focus on where they are going. Of course, keeping your eyes on the road is an important goal to have, but you should also be aware of the other drivers around you. For this, I frequently check my side an rearview mirrors, as well as cars turning onto the street I am on and the car next to me.
When a person have a sleep disorder, they may not be able to drive as they may sleep during the day or they may have fatigue as a symptoms.
Your reflexes may be slower. You may not see potential dangers until it is too late. You may even fall asleep at the wheel. According to information from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, in a study they conducted, one in every 25 adult drivers admitted to having fallen asleep while driving within the last 30 days. If you find that you are often driving tired, do something about it. If you suspect that you have a sleep disorder, visit a physician or a sleep specialist. If you are not getting enough sleep, do something so you can get more
In today’s world, many drivers have become complacent in the fact that the vehicle in which they are operating can be a deadly weapon. A two-ton hunk of metal flying down the freeway at speeds excess of seventy miles an hour carries much potential for catastrophe.
All drivers have an increased risk of crashing when driving late at night but the risk is greater for young, inexperienced drivers. Inexperience in night driving as well as fatigue and risk taking are all contributing factors. ‘
attention. At night it is also important to slow down and check both ways. If there are flashing lights
Studies have shown that when under the influence of alcohol, drivers are not able to respond to stimuli as quickly as when they are sober. An individual needs more time to respond to situations and hazards. If someone is driving a car, the perception of distance is increased. For example, in an ordinary scenario, a driver would be able to respond to
Stay approximately one car length behind the car that is in front of you in a slower speed limit, thereby maintaining a larger buffer zone with safer speeds. It’s important to remain cautious at all times to what is happening around you, your reaction time could be your best defence in avoiding an accident or being involved in one. It’s always a good idea to look in all of your mirrors and also over your shoulder so that you are aware of all the other vehicles around you this is a vital defence move before changing lanes. In addition, driving while you are tired, under the influence of drugs or alcohol can cause serious harm or even death to you or the other people on the roads. Driving tired or distracted can also increase your chances of making mistakes on the road while driving. Driving when you’re tired or distracted will also slow down your bodies reflexes in compromising situation. I think that it’s very important to understand the fundamentals of driving defensively, but at the same time enforce these important factors into a format that makes sense to everybody out there. Always remember that other vehicles out there will make efforts to cut you off and close the safe gap to get one car length ahead. In a sense, they are taking advantage of your defensive driving habits, that’s okay just remember, they aren’t a great defensive driver like we are! Lastly, don’t get angry with the less informed drivers out there. We all have to make a choice to be a safe driver, so it’s up to all of us to adjust our driving skills around the actions of the less educated and less talented drivers. In the end, most people don’t even realize they have poor driving skills, so don’t take it personally when somebody performs an unsafe driving maneuver. Remember to always adjust, keep your safe distance. In heavy traffic