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View Poll Results: Does Anticipating preempt sudden actions?
Yes 194 82.91%
No 2 0.85%
Not always 38 16.24%
Voters: 234. You may not vote on this poll

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Old 14th March 2014, 11:07   #31
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Re: Anticipation - The hallmark of a Good Driver

I am a big believer in anticipation as the key to safe driving. There is absolutely no doubt in my mind that if each of us practiced defensive driving and allowed for the mistakes of others rather than ourselves alone, the streets would be a whole lot safer.

Having said that, I still voted "not always" to your poll question. The simple fact is that all the anticipation and defensive driving in the world cannot save you from idiocy. The SUV who tailgates you flashing his high-beams on a crowded road, the biker who cuts suddenly from behind when you are taking a signalled turn, pedestrians who run blind across a busy intersection...there are times when you are *this* close to getting into a gigantic mess despite not being at fault in the least bit.

Anticipation helps, yes, but imagination is something more useful in these cases!
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Old 14th March 2014, 11:17   #32
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Re: Anticipation - The hallmark of a Good Driver

A bus or a truck stops at a traffic signal on an incline. It is better to keep a couple of feet gap between my car and the rear end of the bus, because there is a chance that he might roll back while slipping the clutch as he tries to take off on the green light.
Sometimes, two wheelers try to slip in through the gap, but that is the price you pay for not getting the rear end of the bus on your front bumper!
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Old 14th March 2014, 11:41   #33
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Re: Anticipation - The hallmark of a Good Driver

Anticipation is the key to driving in India. This is the reason why I think a driver-less car cannot succeed in India. After driving all these years I have learnt to read the mood and body language of vehicles around which helps to anticipate their moves better . Driving here is almost like playing chess where you not just concentrate on the road ahead but you look all around and quickly compute the possibilities in your mind (of course sub consciously) and make your move accordingly.
Response time and margin of error are so narrow, you will not be in a position to react to things when or after they happen.

Last edited by Guna : 14th March 2014 at 11:43.
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Old 14th March 2014, 14:08   #34
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Re: Anticipation - The hallmark of a Good Driver

These days driving is more of anticipating what's going to happen in front of you in a few seconds and then immediately taking the corrective action. Many times, I think the happenings around you give a warning of what's going to happen in a few moments. I feel subconsciously we all keep on anticipating the situation in front of us, because as they said in the CEAT tyres ad; "the roads are filled with idiots!". The traffic is already gone from bad to worse so the best we can do is think what's going to happen and correct ourselves. That surely is a sign of a good driver because we can't change the situation, we can change only ourselves.
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Old 14th March 2014, 15:26   #35
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Re: Anticipation - The hallmark of a Good Driver

One most important area on the road where I have see people lacking Anticipation is at the bends or when there is a 'Blind Spot' turn. I have always noticed that most of the drivers don't anticipate that there would be a vehicle coming round the bend, when they see one they do get shocked and give the "What-are-doing-on-MY-ROAD" look and pass by :-). I experience this almost everyday on my way to home as there are a couple of bends. Since I expect that someone will always pop out, I go extra cautions, hence no mishaps so far by god's grace :-) "Touchwood!!"
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Old 14th March 2014, 15:43   #36
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Re: Anticipation - The hallmark of a Good Driver

Quote:
Originally Posted by Guna View Post
Anticipation is the key to driving in India. This is the reason why I think a driver-less car cannot succeed in India. After driving all these years I have learnt to read the mood and body language of vehicles around which helps to anticipate their moves better . Driving here is almost like playing chess where you not just concentrate on the road ahead but you look all around and quickly compute the possibilities in your mind (of course sub consciously) and make your move accordingly.
Response time and margin of error are so narrow, you will not be in a position to react to things when or after they happen.
+1
Anticipating when a 2 wheeler guy will suddenly venture in your path. In such situations maintaining sufficient gap between your vehicle and the one in front of you will help.
But what is the guarantee that the guy railing you is doing the same?. I feel by trying to do a favor to the vehicle in front of you in case you are forced to jam the brakes, hope that the guy trailing you does not ram his vehicle into yours.
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Old 14th March 2014, 16:59   #37
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Re: Anticipation - The hallmark of a Good Driver

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Originally Posted by noopster View Post
I am a big believer in anticipation as the key to safe driving. There is absolutely no doubt in my mind that

Having said that, I still voted "not always" to your poll question.
Anticipation helps, yes, but imagination is something more useful in these cases!
+1 to that.
I was contemplating(debating) rather what to give key importance to Anticipation or imagination but then decided that anticipation sounded more obvious and first to mind.

The only difference which distinguishes between imagination and anticipation is that the latter is more receptively responsive whilst the former is comparatively receptively passive.

However it is also interesting to see that on the poll that the yes has gone down and the not always option is second high.

Cheers
prasad
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Old 14th March 2014, 17:43   #38
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Re: Anticipation - The hallmark of a Good Driver

Can you drive without anticipating on our roads? Such is the case that anticipation becomes second nature for us.

This is something we learn from experience and out of instinct.
Over the years we pick up small things which help us drive better.

We pick up driving habits of vehicles, the speeds that they can achieve, and typical things specific to vehicles.

Its so much an habit that all of us are always anticipating even when on passenger seat.
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Old 14th March 2014, 18:11   #39
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Re: Anticipation - The hallmark of a Good Driver

Quote:
Originally Posted by silverado View Post
Can you drive without anticipating on our roads? Such is the case that anticipation becomes second nature for us.
We pick up driving habits of vehicles, the speeds that they can achieve, and typical things specific to vehicles.
Exactly!

Just like -

1) There is no point expecting a cab driver to brake at cross roads even though you have the right of way. We learn and adapt to brake and let him pass.

2) A bus, once done picking up passengers from the bus-stand, will immediately move right, instead of proceeding ahead and gradually changing lanes when traffic permits.

3) People alighting from the bus, crossing the road in front of the bus, appearing dead on the traffic in the right-side lane.

4) A bus overtaking one more bus already standstill at a bus stand, just so it can move ahead of the stationary bus and pick up more passengers from then on.

And many more...
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Old 14th March 2014, 19:35   #40
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Re: Anticipation - The hallmark of a Good Driver

When I learnt Driving with my best mates Mayur and Francis, I learnt how to drive in highway and city conditions separately despite learning from a proper driving school who just helped me to get my license.

The Coincidence is that both of them taught me one thing, anticipate the actions of the idiots driving around you.

On the highways keep an eye peeled out at least for a kilometer ahead of you
and 100 meters in the city.

I lost an entire family on my uncle's side when the Sand Lorry in front braked all of sudden an stopped dead on a rural road when a policeman gestured for them to stop and the Winger they were travelling did not stop in time killing 8 of the 16 family members.

Time and time again my friends advise has proved right, especially with ricks and 2 wheeler's zipping around you.

Anticipation is critical no matter where you are driving (especially in Indian Conditions).
Cheers,
Theo
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Old 14th March 2014, 21:40   #41
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Re: Anticipation - The hallmark of a Good Driver

By now we have evolved and all learnt to mind our surroundings. We try to anticipate any sudden moves by the vehicles, people and even animals in the vicinity of our cars or bikes. Why, because its our hard earned money that we are sitting in/on. On the Indian roads I believe there are no proverbial good drivers. Lets face it, if we believe that a person who drives slow, follows lanes is a good driver, think again. You might be stuck behind him and are getting late for work. Honestly, we will honk our horns begging the guy to get a move on.

Can anticipate everything ? I tried to anticipate the movements of our city's infamous auto rickshaws and failed miserably. No amount of traffic rules apply for them. At times I wonder, does the law of gravity even apply for them ?

All said, lets keep our eyes on the road, ears on the sounds outside the car, hands where they should be and hope, almost pray we live to drive another day.
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Old 14th March 2014, 21:57   #42
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Re: Anticipation - The hallmark of a Good Driver

I feel your anticipation is best when you are in the present, that is when driving only drive, completely immersed in the activity, If your thoughts are on something else ( office, home, anything other than the road ) you would still drive and get away without any problems if it is your lucky day, But if there is a sudden unexpected situation you would be in a real mess. The best driver is one who is always in the "Present" !
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Old 14th March 2014, 22:00   #43
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Re: Anticipation - The hallmark of a Good Driver

'Anticipating the worst' always is the sign of a good driver. Always anticipate another driver to do the wrong thing. If a truck is approaching you fast, always anticipate that its brakes are not going to work. If a 2 wheeler is on the left lane, always anticipate that he is going to cut lines without signalling. That would be the safest bet on Indian roads.
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Old 15th March 2014, 00:39   #44
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Re: Anticipation - The hallmark of a Good Driver

appreciate the thread and all contributors.

A few observations/practices which I follow as part of 'defensive driving' :

1) any vehicle parked parallel or facing the road, on the left, will attempt to get 'in' at any time. 99% of drivers do not use the RVM when taking off from standstill, they have to move a little bit to even 'start looking'. If the vehicle is facing away from the road, less chance of it attempting to start moving suddenly (the latter case does not hold in narrow shopping streets where many are parked side by side and the guy who reverses will 'jut in' a little bit before he even begins to 'see')

2) if you feel that the overtake you are planning on a single road / dual carriage way has a 50% chance of an imminent mid-manuever abort ; always chicken out. There are so many different avenues to flaunt your ego or allow the testosterone to get to your head, but not when your life is on the line. It does not matter if you lose an ego battle with a total stranger.

3) two-wheelers will behave roughly the same whether they are riding solo or whether they are having their wife/children as pillion => the mode is simple
- I never use the RVM, even remove it off as it will spoil the 'looks'
- there is no need to honk, since I require only tiny gap
- contrary to popular belief, my two wheeler is a 'point-object' ie, it does not have any 'length' - this means I can cut lanes just after overtaking without worrying whether my rear portion would be hitting the front bumper of the slow moving car moron whom I just overtook.

4) Rule 1 ALWAYS applies to autorickshaws regardless of whether the auto is stationary / moving and regardless of the past 30 mins of its direction of travel / stillness. In other words, think of it this way : the autowallah's seat is an ant-colony - he can be bitten any instant and his hands will move the handlebar as a reaction to the bite => this is the 'normal' operating mode of an autorickshaw

Last edited by venkyhere : 15th March 2014 at 00:49.
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Old 15th March 2014, 08:41   #45
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Re: Anticipation - The hallmark of a Good Driver

A stray animal on road, you try to gauge its next move, you anticipate.

You try to look at the front wheels of a car and see if it is changing direction.

Looking under a bus & around it (as far as you can see while driving) at the stop so that no one (who has alighted from the bus) suddenly tries to cross the road

On Indian roads, its all about anticipating the next move of fellow road user, be it a pedestrian, cattle or automobiles.

Parking a bit away at a narrow, congested railway crossing so that your car is saved from dings & scratches is anticipation as well.
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