Risky behavior is involved in the traffic accidents that kill more than 40,000 Americans each year. Driving while drunk accounts for the majority of serious traffic accidents, and more than half of all road-related fatalities are automobile passengers who might have lived had they used seat belts. Never drive under the influence of alcohol. It slows your reaction times, distorts your vision, and impairs your judgment. And never use other psychoactive drugs (those that alter your mind or behavior, such as marijuana or methamphetamine) while driving. Be sure to read the labels on all prescription and over-the-counter medications for warnings about how they could affect your ability to drive.
Safety with Seat Belts
Every motor vehicle crash has two collisions. The first is a collision of the car with another object. But the second is more important in terms of life and death. That’s when the driver or passenger collides with the vehicle’s interior or is thrown out of the vehicle to collide with the ground, another car, or an object such as a wall. Ejection from a vehicle occurs 10 times more often to occupants who are not wearing seat belts. The best protection for people in a collision is to use lap belts and shoulder restraints. In a head-on collision, these safety restraints can dramatically reduce the chance of injury to the head or the face and cut in half the
risk of serious or fatal injury. Every person in the car must wear a seat belt. It’s the law, and it can save your life. If you transport small children (age 6 and under), be sure your car is equipped with a child safety seat for each child. Be sure the child safety seat is installed and secured to the vehicle’s backseat the way the manufacturer recommends. Children always must ride in the backseat. Children who are too large for a child
safety seat must wear a seat belt. Children who are not protected by safety restraints face increased risk of serious injury. (Traffic injuries are a leading cause of death for children.) During a crash, an unrestrained child becomes an uncontrolled missile that can crash through a windshield or careen into any object or person in the vehicle. Do not consider air bags a substitute for safety belts. Air bags are designed to inflate only during head-on collisions and are useful only as supplements for seat belts. Also, air bags offer no protection during multiple crashes, rollovers, or side collisions. Air bags have been the cause of a number of serious injuries to children and several deaths. They are one of many reasons that children always should ride in back.
Road Rage
Another type of risky behavior that has emerged in recent years is known as “road rage.” It is estimated that as many as 1,500 people are killed or injured on American highways each year as a result of aggressive driving. No single profile fits all aggressive drivers, but they are three times more likely to be male than female, generally between ages 18 and 26, and usually have no record of crime, violence, or illegal drug use.
Although the risks of becoming a victim of road rage are small, if you encounter a threatening driver, the most important thing you can do is defuse the situation by not reacting. Staying safe on the road is a two-part process. Avoid behaviors that could be interpreted as confrontational, such as:
• sudden acceleration
• blocking the passing lane
• tailgating
• braking or swerving, which could cause you to lose control of your car
• cutting off another driver or failing to signal when changing lanes
• making obscene gestures
• failing to dim high beams for oncoming traffic
• taking up multiple parking spaces or damaging another vehicle while parking
All drivers need to control their stress to avoid situations in which they become angry with discourteous or aggressive drivers. A few simple changes in the way you approach driving can significantly reduce stress, including:
• altering your schedule to avoid congestion
• improving the comfort of your vehicle
• concentrating on being relaxed (but not to the point of being distracted)
• not driving when you are angry, upset, or overtired
As a driver, you cannot control traffic, only your reaction to it. Give the other driver the benefit of the doubt. Assume that other drivers’ mistakes are not intentional or aimed at you personally.
