[SirAlec]

Road Safety TIP 1
Always be careful while driving through Cross Roads or T-Junction. Green light gives you the right to go first but that does not mean other driver is careful enough.

So while passing by X-Roads or T- Junction, put your foot off the gas pedal, lower the speed look both ways and pass.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ak69pwTTofI

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tOBWVFoCoEc

PS:
1. Starting from the first day of the year. I will be writing one tip daily.
2. Others can help too in expanding this thread. But please make it consistent with the format.
3. Tips for improvement in the format is welcome.
4. Do not clutter the thread with useless comments.
5. While posting relevant video youtube links, make sure its precise and of 30-60 secs max.

Thanks

[escaflowne]

I want add to your tip.
It is not only X-Roads or T- Junction, it is good to lower the speed near bus stops and pedestrian crossing. Some of the pedestrian crossing will near to major bus stops.

[Thad E Ginathom]

Originally Posted by SirAlec

...Green light gives you the right to go first but that does not mean other driver is careful enough.

I had this conversation with several UK driving instructors that I took lessons with, so I guess they do it with everyone, and that it mostly turns out the same...Instructor asks the question:

"What does a green traffic light mean?"

"Go."

"No! What does a green light mean?"

"Duh?"

"It means proceed if it is safe to do so."

The onus is always on us to check that.

(they actually use the correct wording from the British Highway Code, which I've forgotten, but the message is much the same)

So while passing by X-Roads or T- Junction, put your foot off the gas pedal, lower the speed look both ways and pass.

Changing to a lower gear is good. More control and you'll slow down quicker when you realise you need to. You can also accelerate away faster if that's your style

[Rehaan]

Reversing:

Always turn off your music when reversing, and never reverse faster than 5 km/h (walking speed).

Reasons:

1) Pedestrians don't expect cars to move backwards and are generally looking the other way to keep safe
2) You're moving against traffic too
3) You might know what reversing lights indicate, but a majority of people don't
4) Blind spots. Your visibility is greatly limited by the pillars, roof and boot
5) Your car control isn't as good when going backwards (hence go slow)
6) Turning off the music will help you hear early warning signs, be it a scrape or a warning yell

-----

Great thread. I have a collection of these, and i'll share one every day for a few weeks as well.

cya
R

[ankan.m.blr]

A small thought from my side :
while reversing to a very narrow parking spot, where you are not able to see exact position of a pillar/obstacle/another bike or car; its better to ask someone to guide you. If there is no one present, its better to pull up the hand-brake, get down from the car and see the exact location of the obstacle. I learnt this lesson when I got a nasty scratch on my car in the poorly lit basement parking of Bellandur Central mall.

[mb_jg]

I have one, please do not place your mobile phones between your legs while driving. My friend & I were to meet for coffee one early morning, he placed his mobile phone on the seat between his legs & forgot about it.
Suddenly he receives a call & the vibrator plus ringtone added to his sudden knee jerk reaction, & instinctively he looked between his legs to see who was calling. Well, what happened next was not just funny but equally dangerous, he rammed into a buffalo which had suddenly wandered onto the road. All this happened in a split second & he had absolutely no time to react. The buffalo was bleeding a bit & his Thar did not suffer too much damage.
I personally switch off my mobile phone on highway drives, the sudden ring when a call comes in is too instantly distracting. I activate my missed call alerts which I can refer after I stop for breaks etc. But really, a missed phone call is worth ramming into something.

[drmohitg]

Always slow down while crossing a parked bus. A lot of passengers from the bus tend to get down from the front gate, go in front of the bus and cross to the other side of the road without thinking twice about the moving traffic in the right most lane.

[Blue_V]

Originally Posted by drmohitg

Always slow down while crossing a parked bus. A lot of passengers from the bus tend to get down from the front gate, go in front of the bus and cross to the other side of the road without thinking twice about the moving traffic in the right most lane.

Have to second that.

Especially when travelling outside bangalore on the state highways or rural roads, take care when a local transport stops. People hardly pay attention to traffic on road. So when you approach the stopped bus/tempo/jeep, slow down to minimum and honk, pass very slowly and then resume your speed.

[ashis89]

Never slow down or stop in immediate front of a truck or bus. We assume they can see us and will brake accordingly but they usually can't see a few feets in front of their vehicles as they sit very high from the ground.


A special one for B'loreans - Always keep an eye on your RVM for Volvos. They move very fast and will cross you narrowly. If you are unmindful, you can be shaken and hence might lose control momentarily.

Also if a bus-stop is approaching, the Volvo in front of you will suddenly swerve from the extreme right lane to the left of the road. Again be careful.

[Shiv_1984]

My share :
Late nights, its better to avoid country side or gully roads. I have heard many incidents of locals waiting for a prey with whom they can create a scuffle and extract some money. They have umpteen ways to trigger a fight and I bet you can't win unless you are sunny deol or belong to some political/administrative family.

If you are taking public conveyence, make sure they take the best known and most general routes and do not take you for a ride by asking you to pay less and take a shortcut. There have been few cases of chennai share autos plying on OMR detouring from the main road and end up mugging the passengers.

[normally_crazy]

Originally Posted by drmohitg

Always slow down while crossing a parked bus. A lot of passengers from the bus tend to get down from the front gate, go in front of the bus and cross to the other side of the road without thinking twice about the moving traffic in the right most lane.

On Sunday evening I almost killed a couple with a 1 year old kid in the man's arms. They jumped out from the front of the bus at Powai Lake without watchingfor traffic when I was coming down the L&T flyover at 60 kmph. I braked hard and the man ran across while the woman ran back in front of the bus (which was still stationery , thank God ! )

I was shaking and shivering for 10 minutes after that.

[murillo]

Originally Posted by drmohitg

Always slow down while crossing a parked bus. A lot of passengers from the bus tend to get down from the front gate, go in front of the bus and cross to the other side of the road without thinking twice about the moving traffic in the right most lane.

In such instances, it helps if we look at the bottom of the stationary vehicle to see if any legs can be found there.

[honeybee]

Always look in your mirrors before any sudden maneuvers, such as changing the lane or pulling over. No matter how much the road was deserted a few seconds back, it's important to glance in the mirror just before you start the maneuver.

[SirAlec]

Road Safety TIP 2
Do not tailgate. Always maintain safe distance. Especially if its a truck or bus. Bus/Truck driver have lot of stress already, trying to maneuver the behemoth, So its your duty not add to that. The rear view mirror do have limitations on its depth of field. So if you are too close to the truck/bus, driver may miss you completely on his rear view mirror. Also do remember truck/bus vehicle brakes are operated by vaccum, same tech used in trains. So its stopping power is 10 times more than a normal car we drive.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N-F8ld74Tqo

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mhT9_d-UQco

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jX3EoB2ncFY

PS: Guys! Guys! please follow a standard format. Also please post with a supporting video. Wanna make this thread one stop destination for tips.

Thanks

[revintup]

Never use hi beam at oncoming vehicles especially when the vehicle is overtaking and in your lane.

I have seen this tendency where people get irritated because the oncoming overtaking vehicle is in their(wrong) lane and give a full blast of hi beam to make life difficult for them.

Please understand that if the vehicle loses control, then its going to ram you head on.

Always better to 'curse' and slow down than risk your own life by blinding others.