[blackasta]

Originally Posted by greenhorn

question on making u turns
Usually whenever I try to make a U turn, I wait for a gap in traffic. But sometimes, there are no gaps, and i end up gradually nudging my way into the opposite side. This gets me a lot of dirty looks, people honking flashing, near misses with panic braking despite them seeing a while away.

Is there a better/right way?

U turn yields to straight traffic from other side, and also yields to traffic taking left turn from the right side of the crossroad if there is one. It is the turn that is lowest in the pecking order.

[greenhorn]

Originally Posted by Thad E Ginathom

but... how long have you got?

I have time, but this is a very narrow(1.5 lane) road (velachery tambaram road) and traffic very quickly gets stuck behind me if i wait too long to turn - the turn is just after a bus stop, so most of the people who are behind me are ones who want to go straight, and they start making an infernal racket.

[SS-Traveller]

Originally Posted by blackasta

It is the turn that is lowest in the pecking order.

And yet, such a minor technicality is entirely lost to the Indian driving population.

[blackasta]

Originally Posted by greenhorn

I have time, but this is a very narrow(1.5 lane) road (velachery tambaram road) and traffic very quickly gets stuck behind me if i wait too long to turn - the turn is just after a bus stop, so most of the people who are behind me are ones who want to go straight, and they start making an infernal racket.

Hate to say this, but after hearing the traffic situation (narrow road, busy traffic, bus stop), this gap should be marked as no U turn by the traffic guards.

[CarNerd]

Hello all, I just wanted to create a thread on mistakes committed by us while on road. I don't know if such a thread exists but anyways I want to confess my mistakes on road. So here they are:

1) When I was driving, my right rear view mirror touched the opposite guy's mirror! Actually that road on that day had been narrowed by vehicles parked on one side & a cement mixer truck on the other. So the two of us slowly came very close to each other & the mirrors got hit.

2) I was in my car standing at an intersection on the second row waiting for the front guys to move. One was a car guy in front of me & the other was a auto wallah beside the car & slightly on my front right. As soon as the car moved, I moved my car but since the auto didn't move, I hit him from back before I applied the brakes.

I regret making these two mistakes & feel like I'm not a good driver as I think myself to be. So I request you guys to share your mistakes while on road so that I can learn from your mistakes.

[Aakarsh]

You should properly search whether similar thread(s) exists before starting a new one. It's worth investing a few minutes in order to search for appropriate thread rather than creating a new one. We are the only ones who have to maintain the quality of the forum. In a single go I was able to search for few similar threads.

@Mods : please merge this thread as similar threads already exists.

Regards
Aakarsh

[a4anurag]

Originally Posted by CarNerd

Hello all, I just wanted to create a thread on mistakes committed by us while on road.

No offence buddy, please do search before creating a new thread:

http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/street...kes-avoid.html

This thread is the right one to get your posts moved too.

[hserus]

I am afraid I was not able to get a picture due to my phone running out of battery, but Hero Motocorp appears to have tied up with at least one RTO I was visiting yesterday (Electronic City, Bangalore), and erected huge, informative boards about safe driving.

One board was about why you should wear a helmet - they didn't just say "helmets help prevent brain injury", they added that brain injuries can cause paralysis, speech and memory loss, death etc.

The other board was a set of tips on driving at night, in fog and on hills.

Each topic above had about ten tips each with sound and practical information

The hill driving sign had instructions like yield to uphill traffic, honk at curves, avoid distractions like stereos on hill roads .. more importantly, "hill driving is for experienced drivers".

The fog and rain sections had good detail on when to use high beam, fog lamps and when to use low beam, using the car heater to improve visibility, driving in the middle of the road as water can pool at the sides, care about speed and braking distance on wet roads etc.

Congratulations to both the RTO and to Hero Motocorp. If some BHPian lives anywhere near Bannerghatta Road (which is where RTO Electronic City is, nowhere near Electronic City at all) please swing by and post photos.

[neeravnaik]

I had got a safe driving booklet from Skoda with one of the auto magazines and it had some useful tips.

One that has always stuck to me ensures I am really careful driving on highways especially at night. They asked a simple question - " have you ever seen a truck driver wearing spectacles?"

I can't recall truck drivers wearing specs and statistically many of them are likely to have less than 100% eyesight. Coupled with long hours they drive and general aggressive driving styles you need to add that extra safety buffer driving around trucks (and even buses)

[VivOverland]

As some of you would know, my writing is getting somewhat prolific these days. Don't ask... Decided to branch out and discuss my pet peeve - traffic and driving in India. Yes, I know I'm in the minority and no-one else seems to face this issue hahaha. Yes, I do realise it's how everyone else drives that is the problem. Yes, I do know this is India!!! (cue desi-inspired Spartan music). All I ask is, hear me out patiently - much like our friendly traffic cop does as he writes out a challan. No, please keep that 100 bucks in your pocket, I'm just not interested. Folks, we have a serious problem in India. We know how to drive (they say, if you drive here you can drive anywhere), but really can't drive (no matter who you know, try using your Indian license in Dubai!). As fellow Team-BHPers know, it isn't just the hardware in your car, but your own software that makes driving nirvana possible. And that IMHO is where the problem lies. Yes, software, as in my and your ability to drive, well.

But first, a story. Once upon a time dear friends, there walked an old man, along the shore. He looked weak and frail, but spent his time in a very strange way. Every now and then, he would bend down and toss something far out into the waves lapping at his feet. A fisherman watching him was quite curious and called from afar - "What on earth are you doing?!" The old man beckoned to him to come closer. Only now, did the fisherman notice the starfish beached on the sand. As the tide turned, it left many of them behind, to die as the water receded. The old man was busy picking them up - one at a time - to toss them back into the life-giving water. "Are you crazy" - said the fisherman, "there are thousands of starfish dying here, how can you possibly make a difference!". "Well" said the old man, as he tossed the next one into the water "I made a difference to THAT one."

There are many reasons we drive so badly in India, and hopefully I won't need to convince anyone that we do have an issue here. Many fellow Team-BHPians have covered this topic in great detail, and there are many threads of note already. However, my approach differs - much like Kangana's perspective of Bollywood today. I believe, WE are the issue. And we I say WE, I mean ME and YOU. Don't tell me you follow your driving theory to the T, I know I don't - not yet anyway. As they say, accepting I have a problem is the first step towards therapy. Call this the first 'Drivers' Anonymous, I don't care. I'm here for the starfish. That starfish, being you, dear reader of this post. If I can save one life or even a limb by my rant - it will help me sleep better tonight. The thing with this journey is, you probably won't know how many people you save by driving better. You'll just gain good karma or something, and gain possible no-claim bonuses from your Insurance Company.
So, here goes, my take on Driving Basics (DB) for India. As a new, but responsible member of Team-BHP (see rules) - I feel this is my duty, and I hope to save many starfish with this post. To quote Spiderman (badly) - the power of the Team-BHP sticker - comes with great responsibility.

DB #1 - Two-second rule.
Mark the rear end of the vehicle ahead of you, against a static point (lamp post, stone, your salary, whatever). Count the seconds till you pass the same point. Less than 2 seconds, and you're in the danger zone. Unless you're superhuman (it would show up in your annual health checkup), you CANNOT react effectively to sudden braking in less than 2 seconds. When you do stop, make sure you can see the rear wheels of the vehicle ahead of you. I call such folks bonnet drivers, who need to look over their bonnet to drive - not because of their choice of headgear. Resist the need to crawl up till you can read their dashboard, it's none of your business, and kinda creepy anyway.

Here's what you risk in <2 second situations.


DB #2 - Lane discipline.
We think we follow this one, but don't. Know what road markers signify, and follow them. Try never to overtake on an undivided line despite a clear road ahead - you'll learn how much self control you have. I know from bitter experience, and still learning. Maintain your lane, and indicate (3 clicks on your indicator) BEFORE you switch lanes. Don't cut ahead of someone into another lane, you must yield - unless you're in the overtaking lane (extreme RHS). Even then, yielding is a virtue, and there is no such thing as 'right of way'. Yield to those on a roundabout / circle, don't rush in like you're getting free tickets to the Bieber concert. Don't create a traffic snake!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iHzzSao6ypE

Read between the lines


DB #3 - Defensive driving.
No, this does not mean being defensive. It means - learn to drive like Master Yoda. Anticipate situations before they occur. Be in the right place at the right time. Don't rush into trouble, avoid it proactively. Ignore this basic, and you're ready to drive an Auto anywhere in India. Learn this one, and you will master the Force (well, you'll be in tune with the traffic flow at least).



That's it. Short and sweet. Follow these 3 steps, and you'll already be a much better driver. It isn't easy, and I'm going through the journey myself. Be like the Buddha, follow your own path to enlightenment. Anything which takes you away, is a distraction or worse, an attachment.
Be a starfish, then find one more. I would love to hear if you do.

[oldshivabull]

Just saw interesting posts in Quora on the most salient driving tip at https://www.quora.com/What-is-that-o...ou-should-know . Thought I would kick open this thread. The most important tip is to look further ahead on the road than usual.

Which ones do you consider important and would like to share?

[VaidhiR]

This is a good thread. I cant believe I missed out on this all this while.

Today a weird thing happened and I wanted to make a post of it here to illustrate the advantages of defensive driving, some driving tips, etiquette and common mistakes.

In my route to work every day, I follow this route. Please see the attached image. For easy understanding, I have split them into sections from a-f in the direction of my drive. The entire section has a speed limit of 100 kmph and there are no dividers. Just one lane to go and one lane to come. And this is in Germany. So honking is usually frowned upon.

Anyway, today, we were a convoy of 6 cars starting at section-a and accelerating towards 100 kmph limit. I was the 4th. There were 3 cars ahead and 2 behind. As we approached section-b, we were steadily at 95-98 kmph which is the norm for a road of this type. Surprise speed cameras and stuff. Plus great mileage in my car at this speed.

The car behind me was almost tailgating and honked at me to make me go faster. But he was not a very patient guy, and started to overtake once he realised that I was not going to go any faster. I couldnt go any faster because there were 3 cars in front of me. But this "south side of a north facing horse" didnt see that. He built up speed to 120-125 and started overtaking giving me (and the cars in the front) a single long finger. I was pissed off and annoyed. I wanted to give him one back. But I maintained my cool. He overtook all of us and raced ahead. We reached section-d and realised that he was nowhere in sight. He must have sped off at 130-140 kmph in a road with speed limit 100 kmph.

When we reached section-f, we saw that his car was rolled over on the opposite side of the road and he was crawling out of his overturned car. The right hand turn was too much for his speed and he didnt estimate the speed of the cars in the opposing lane when attempting to overtake. In Germany we drive on the right, and we overtake on the left. So in a right hand curve, the visibility is reduced further because the road curves towards right and his view of the opposite side road was blocked by the convoy of vehicles he wanted to overtake.

I felt bad for this guy. But I felt happy because he probably learnt his lesson and will think twice from now on before endangering other road users on the road. Which got me thinking about defensive driving. And the reason for this post.

Section #A
- Straight
- Good visibility on the straight
- Only leading vehicle in opposing lane is visible
- Hard to estimate the speed of the opposing vehicle
- Hard to estimate number of cars in opposing lane
- Hard to estimate number of cars in our lane
- Overtaking only possible if NO vehicles in the opposing lane or vehicles approach is very far away

Section #B
- Left curve
- Ok visibility
- Easy to estimate the speed of the opposing vehicle
- Easy to estimate number of cars in opposing lane
- Easy to estimate number of cars in our lane
- Overtaking not recommended. But possible if NO vehicles in the opposing lane or vehicles approach is very far away

Section #C
- Straight
- Good visibility on the straight
- Only leading vehicle in opposing lane is visible
- Hard to estimate number of cars in opposing lane
- Hard to estimate number of cars in our lane
- Overtaking possible based on factors estimated in section #B

Section #D
- Right curve and then left curve
- Hard to estimate number of cars in opposing lane
- Hard to estimate number of cars in our lane
- No overtaking recommended because of swinging behaviour of cars and trucks

Section #E
- Straight
- Good visibility on the straight
- Only leading vehicle in opposing lane is visible
- Hard to estimate number of cars in opposing lane
- Hard to estimate number of cars in our lane
- Hard to estimate the speed of a the leading vehicle in the opposing lane
- Overtaking possible if NO vehicles in the opposing lane or vehicles approach is very far away

Section #F
- Right curve
- Bad visibility
- Very hard to estimate number of cars in opposing lane
- Very hard to estimate number of cars in our lane
- Absolutely no overtaking possible or recommended

So when it rains or snows, the speed reduces accordingly. Snow fall is more dangerous than rain because rain water flows to the side of the road. But snow just stays on the road. So, when it rains, I drive at 70-75 kmph. And when it snows, 60-65 kmph. And in both conditions, absolutely no overtaking. We might be in control of our car. But we dont know what might happen when a slight oversteer or understeer happens. Both to our car or the overtaken car.

In my experience, while driving, error of judgement is a major contributing factor to an accident. When we drive, and we overtake, we dont take necessary factors into account while making the split second decision of overtaking. The factors we need to consider are

1. Our vehicle speed and its limitations
2. Speed of vehicle(s) that we wish to overtake
3. No. of vehicle(s) that we wish to overtake
4. Vehicle(s) in the opposing lane
5. No. of vehicle(s) in the opposing lane
6. Speed of vehicle(s) in the opposing lane
7. Topography of the road
8. Weather conditions

And we vastly overestimate #1 and underestimate everything else.

So fellow road users. Drive responsibly. Wear seatbelts. And allow for the mistakes of other drivers. And be aware.

[Mechy_74]

Such a nice thread! One needs to keep coming back to it every now and then, for a refresher, if nothing else.

Like many others, I also feel like saying so much on this topic, but most of that is already so well articulated.

Today I will just rue the total absence of indicator discipline in NCR. I remember from late 1990s and early 2000s that people used to use their turn indicators of cars and bikes. But today it is hard to find any biker who uses indicator for turns, leave aside lane change. Even car drivers hardly use indicators for lane change.

This just goes to show the place of discipline in our driving. We just look at the next rule-breaker to find approval for our own infractions. I only wish that it all changes for the better, with more stringent MV norms now in place.

[luvDriving]

A very good thread indeed and much to learn from it.

I was wondering if anyone else follows the practice of keeping a loop of checking the mirrors in the Left-Center-Right sequence. I have developed this habit of periodically doing this loop since it keeps me informed about the traffic around me and their speeds. It has also alerted me many times when some two wheeler or four wheeler is coming at an excessive speed and I need to take evasive action.

Another thing that is helpful is anticipation. Here in Pune the PMPML bus drivers are all over the place. They break traffic signals whenever they can and stop far away from the bus stop in order to block traffic from over taking them. They will also speed up in the middle lane or right lane when the next stop is just a few meters away. Of course I know their job is tough and our me-first public do not make it any easier.

[akshye]

It's a good thread. I've read it in past prior to joining T-BHP as well and learnt a lot. I'd like to share the rules I was taught to follow; in-line with this thread, I'll call them etiquette rather than rules.

So, here my 2 cents:
1. Taught by my dad:
Drive like you are a passenger. Very simple rule. Every time before acting, think as if you are in a passenger seat. Would you like such move by the driver then? May it be braking, accelerating, overtaking or lane changing. If such maneuver would scare you, or catch you off-the-guard as a passenger, well, don't do it.

2. Taught by my uncle:
Larger the vehicle you are driving, more cautious you should be while driving.
Imagine a kitten zooming past you, almost bumps into you. How do you feel? You just think, "Good, it didn't bump into me. It would have hurt the kitten.", and that's that.
Now imagine you just hear heavy footsteps of an elephant approaching you at pace. It might not be too close to you either; still it will scare you to death.
That's how on-going traffic sees a badly driven cycle vs an SUV.

I try to follow these 2 rules, as a result, all my passengers like being in my car and co-drivers don't mind being around me in traffic or on highway.