Highway speeds - Keep your distance!
It always amazes me how close people follow going highway speeds. They seem to think it's OK to follow 4 car lengths at 110K / 70MPH... Yesterday afternoon, returning from a day trip to the Banff /...
Forum Discussion
toedtoes wrote:
I always leave 3-4 seconds between me and the car in front of me. Especially in stop and go traffic.
For those who decry "they cut in front of me", think about it.
This is NOT a line. You don't reach a common end where those extra cars will get the prize before you. So it doesn't matter how many cars are in front of you - as long as you are moving forward, you are getting where you are going.
Leaving the space and letting cars move over and get off the highway/freeway without having to stop will get everyone to their destinations faster than if you hoard the space and make them slow down or stop to make their exit - regardless of how many cars there are.
It also reduces your stress level.
Thank you!
When driving a heavier vehicle, you not only need to allow distance to react to the car in front slowing, you need to add extra distance because he can slow faster than you can. The fact that somebody will steal your following distance, and still not have any is something an adult has to deal with. The only safe thing you can do about it is drop off his donkey and repeat. This is why you often see 2 trucks running side by each approaching a lane drop. You can rant about them blocking traffic, but in just a few seconds the trucks are rolling at the average speed traffic is moving and most of the speed-up/slow-down/speed-up is gone.
