[Dieseldunk]

Have been thinking off late that we have so many nitpickings and gruntlings to pour out, and therefore to give a soothing effect, thought of adding this topic.

What set me thinking was yesterday, whilst returning home from office near the Ashok Pillar Udhayam theatre junction from Kasi theatre, there was this two-wheeler who suddenly decided to become Rossi in Chennai avatar. He does a sharp turn at nearly 45 degree slant to the ground, just inches away from the rear wheel of a bus and straightens up to once again miss an Indica by a cat's whisker. I watch in my side mirror and realize he will cut across my left. Anticipating the same move to a safe distance and another biker cuts into the space I created, and sure enough brakes squeal and heated words are exchanged.

Enough of this long preamble. To put a perspective to my post, here are a few questions (answers are always welcome):

Is following the speed limit, lane discipline, slow driving the sign of a good driver?

OR

Knowing what is ahead, behind and aside us....anticipating most possibilities a skill which we need to develop to become better than average drivers? I am specifying that cognition of an event is driving a reflex, but preempting the need for a reflex (like a sudden swerve or sudden brake) can be reduced. For instance how many times do we instinctively foresee a vehicle / pedestrian.

What are the instances wherein anticipating or not anticipating has rewarded or punished us in our driving sojourn?

Hope to hear from our gurus on this.

Cheers

[amitoj]

Oh yeah this surely rings a bell!

I remember once when I was driving down Banenrghatta road, I noticed in my RVM a call center cab following me too closely and the driver talking on the phone. Well, soon enough, I reached a line of stopped cars on the road. I stopped too, keeping more than usual distance from the car in the front. I look in my RVM and see the cab approaching and notice that the driver is not looking ahead and will apply the brakes a bit too late. Sure enough that happens. But just after he hits the brakes but before he hits me from behind i take my foot off the brakes to let the car roll forward and apply brakes again to stop before i hit the car in front. That day, I believe i saved 3 cars from serious damage just because i was paying attention to the road, and not just because I was in my lane and within the traffic rules.

[abirnale]

Definitely yes!

Anticipation is the name of the game our subconscious mind plays all the time. More you experience the driving, the mind gets trained for anticipation to many observations you make on the road. And that is how the reflexes take place as well.

Of course when you anticipate things, you can avoid some great accidents that were waiting to happen. And when you have gathered so much experience, this anticipation becomes your first reflex action.

[Soumyajit9]

Well, yes, Prediction, by Focussing on moving objects around you definitely helps.

I would be dumb to be a sitting duck, while someone rear ends, or T-Bones me.

Sample this from yesterday, while I was returning from work.

I was approaching a small, un-scientific hump near my house, which I am aware of. I see in my ORVM that a water tanker is approaching me at a good speed. He has been trailing me closely for a good 2-3 minutes. When I slow down near the hump, I didn't see that he has slowed down in tandem. My front wheels go over the hump at my desired speed (slowly). Then I had a sudden realization that the tanker would rear-end me. So instead of letting my rear wheels go over the hump at a slow pace, in tandem with my front wheels, I accelerated and the rear wheels bounced over the hump, and I zoomed ahead. That's when I see that the tanker's front wheels jumped over the hump at a good speed and I could see many litres of water splashing all around and the tanker shook violently. I surely was saved from being rear-ended, because instead of following rules/regulations/SOP/etc, etc, I took a small predictable move.

Sometimes, I become a bad driver too, for some vehicles.
There are multiple small speed humps all along the ORR in Bangalore. Some of them can be crossed in 4th gear too. I generally don't slow down here and predict the movement of the vehicle ahead of me, whether he/she has plans of slowing down or not. I try to switch to an empty lane with no vehicles ahead of me so that I can cross the hump at a decent speed, without switching to a lower gear.
May seem to the car which has slowed down, that I am overspeeding or driving rashly, but its' just a predictable move.

[Santoshbhat]

Yes anticipation is definitely a hallmark of a good driver but before anticipating we needs to be aware, aware of what is happening in all four directions around us so that we can anticipate. Mirrors are vital for this.

I always tell my dad to be as predictable to other motorists as possible because they are anticipating your move as much as you are trying to anticipate theirs.

Driving in India is almost like a martial art . We need to be aware, read the mind of pedestrians, animals, other motorists, cops and what not and then work out complex permutations and combinations and then make our move in a split second. Sometimes I wonder how we manage to survive on our roads.

[mayankk]

Absolutely necessary.
Like the tyre advert says, the roads are full of idiots.

In addition to the regular stuff about keeping an eye out for bobbing-weaving, stationary etc vehicles, I also get panicky if I am stuck behind a bus/SUV/Cab/Tintessential-car, and will pass, or drop back to have someone in front who I can look beyond, either through or over.
Being able to see through cars(in a way) can negate the stupidity, in case, of the driver in front of you, in case he's braker of the sudden variety.
Irritatitngly, I also like to stick to the right lane(keeping the speeds up, not crawling along, though) where allowed, since the lookout is only required on one side. Car repairs, especially paint-jobs are quite expensive.

[dark.knight]

I'm all for safe/defensive driving and that's how I learnt to drive. I always say teach/learn driving the right way and from there the road will be easier (incidental pun). I learnt a year or so after I qualified by age to drive, my first thought was the roads are sheer chaos, jay-walkers taunting you, criss-crossing motorists, side-swiping lane changes and something Indian motorists specialize in, endless honking. I knew I wanted to be different, just a better driver than everyone else so I taught myself a few things which I strictly adhere to.

- Avoid middle lanes at all costs, Indians have a tendency to sandwich vehicles in the middle as the left lane corners us by moving right and right lane corners by moving left.

- Keeping in regular city speeds on the rightmost lane as much as possible, but also leaving atleast 10-12 feet at a minimum from the vehicle ahead so as to avoid honking, sudden stoppage.

- Honking as minimum as possible, accepting that rickshaws/buses/2 wheelers care a damn anyway, why should I give them the thrills of their flailing arms towards me to indicate that even if they go slow/change lanes without warning, it is still my fault.

- If I see a bus/tanker barrelling down the road towards me when I'm on red signal I use the hazards for 4-5 seconds, they instantly slow down.

- When parked at signal on an incline I leave atleast 10 feet clearance from the car ahead, I have seen too many rookies roll down when green signal comes on. I personally ensure I dont roll back even 1 mm in the steepest of inclines. Mastering the clutch and steering is something a real driver does.

- In the twisty tarmac its amusing to me how people switch lanes when turning, this is due to lack of confidence of sticking to the lane when cornering. I ensure that the car does not waver 1 inch when cornering, sticking to the same lane and using indicators when necessary.

- Few general rules in India - autos are slow and usually jam the left/middle lanes, stick to right to overtake them. Avoid 2 wheelers sandwiching you by keeping close to medians. Cabs and tempos zoom fast, let them overtake you while you keep your peace and poise. You are better off behind Volvos than ahead, keep a good distance too as they change lanes like theres no tomorrow. As for jaywalkers flash high-beam, even then there is no guarantee they'll comply, if so stop and let them make merry.

There is no fun in high speed, if anything the vehicle moves faster than your reflexes and that is suitable only in racetracks. I rather enjoy the curves and handling at medium speeds. I keep a 360 degree tracking of vehicles because driving is a responsibility, something I enjoy. India is no place for cars but in the end we make do and adapt the best we can.

[swiftnfurious]

One thing I do in while approaching traffic signals (if there is any vehicle behind me) is to switch on my hazards from a decent distance and slow down progressively. I usually keep it ON till I make sure the vehicle behind me is slowing down.

Another thing I always notice is pedestrian crossing while overtaking a bus stopped in the left lane. There are numerable instances where people just pop up from the front of the bus to cross. You can notice their movement from under the bus and whenever I see "legs" via the space under the bus, I slow down and honk continuously.

[gabrielthomas]

The other day i was traveling with my mom and wife for a weekend shopping in my previous car(Zen 2006 LXI). I was actually coming back from T.Nagar in chennai towards Loyola college where the road smoothly and broadly bends to your left and soon as you straighten the steering another road from the right(which also bends from the inner side) and joins you. Exactly at this intersection, a gentleman on a Honda Activa with this wife as the pillion rider joins my stream by taking a really huge turn which was really unnecessary. I had a view of him when i had actually straightened up and as as anticipated, he came directly in front of me that i had to apply a real very nasty sudden brake. The impact was such that my mom seated at the rear seat banged her head in the co passenger seat in the front. The topping on the ice was, that gentleman started screaming at me. I got down from my car and gave him a piece of my mind that he understood this mistake was on his side and he sped off. Anticipation does help a lot!!

[JLS]

Voted yes.
I believe ability to anticipate is very tightly linked to the experience of the surroundings, and knowledge of road/traffic conditions.
Also, alertness and focus on road greatly helps in anticipating when some idiot around you is going to commit a stupid mistake.

Regards,

JLS

[suresh_gs]

In Bangalore during peak hours, there is no question of going fast courtesy the traffic jam. Even if the traffic is less and if i see cross roads meeting the main road, i usually slow down knowing that somebody or the other will suddenly venture in your path. While trailing a city bus, if the driver suddenly stops, i usually play the waiting game before he starts again rather than taking a turn based on the gap between me and the bus.

[GTO]

Great thread!

When I was teaching my brother how to drive (his first time on the Highway), my tip to him : Always remain prepared for the absolute worse, unexpected thing that the other vehicle can do?

- See that Innova in front of you? What if he suddenly slams on the brake? Are you prepared? Have you maintained a good enough gap?

- 3-wheeler at the intersection? What if he unexpectedly drives in your path, at the last minute?

- Overtaking a vehicle? What if he abruptly moves to the right when you are overtaking? Have you made your intentions amply clear?

- Cow standing on the median? What if it instantaneously decides to cross the road when you are too close to it, at a speed of 100 kph?

- Rash car following you? What if he's overtaking you from the left, when you least expect it?

Lots more examples over the 7 hours we spent on the highway. You get the gist. Properly anticipating the move of others, and preparing for the worst, is the difference between a good & bad driver. The millions of idiots on Indian roads don't deserve any benefit of doubt.

[sandeepmohan]

Originally Posted by Dieseldunk

Is following the speed limit, lane discipline, slow driving the sign of a good driver?

In the western world Yes. In our country, you will get rear ended, possibly killed trying to do everything perfect.

However, anticipation is an absolute must. I was being over cautious when I drove in the USA during my short visit. There was no need to, atleast to the extent I was. Natural tendency as a result of time spent on the road in India. It is rare to find someone cutting a lane or breaking rules cause they know the punishment is harsh. I avoid sitting in the front seat of a cab cause it makes me nervous. There is zero anticipation with most cab drivers.

[ankan.m.blr]

Originally Posted by dark.knight

- If I see a bus/tanker barrelling down the road towards me when I'm on red signal I use the hazards for 4-5 seconds, they instantly slow down.

This is a practical tip. There are many rear-ending-at-red-signal accidents mentioned in this forum. Every time I stop at a signal, I am paranoid about a vehicle rear ending me. Can we all follow this practice of switching on hazard lights if we feel the vehicle in the back has not noticed that we have stopped. Maybe this can bring down such accidents. Experts please comment whether such use of hazard lights is not against driving rules/etiquette.

[Dieseldunk]

However there seems to be truly different class of drivers/pedestrians/ citizens however you name them. They always expect that the other person should be more cautious like the Caveat Emptor (let the buyer beware) rule and such people are ones we should deal with more than just a perfunctory caution.

To illustrate- A pedestrian has all the right on a pedestrian crossing but they should cross when there is reasonable distance from the nearest moving vehicle(but Alas! it shall never be) they guy will choose the most inopportune moment to cross when one can literally see the vapor from the bonnet.
Try telling him and you will get a earful and may land with a ruptured tympanum or malfunctioning eustachian canal.

Cheers