Driving Tips – The two-second rule

 
This week’s driving tip is the two second rule.
 
The most common cause of accidents is a lack of space between vehicles.
 
You owe it to yourself and your passengers to keep a safe gap between you and the car ahead at all times.
 
If you are ever behind the wheel, or in the passenger seat and your view to the front is something like that in the picture below… it’s only a matter of time before a crash happens.
 
 

 
The easiest way to judge a safe gap is to use the two-second rule.
 
By keeping a minimum of a two second time gap in front of your vehicle (double in poor weather) you will create space in which to react to any emergency that happens ahead.
 
In wet weather or on poor road surfaces you should double this gap. Remember that two seconds is a minimum gap, the longer the gap, the bigger your safety margin.
 
 

 
 
 
In wet weather or on poor road surfaces you should double this gap. Remember that two seconds is a minimum gap, the longer the gap, the bigger your safety margin.
 
 

 
 
Look around and you will notice that many drivers don’t leave a big enough a gap, especially in poor weather conditions – read the news and watch TV and you will see stories about accidents in which people are killed and injured when vehicles are hit from behind – especially on fast roads.
 
Leaving a bigger gap will not affect your journey time – in fact it in some situations you might even complete the journey quicker because with a safe gap you are more likely to see overtaking opportunities when there are slow vehicles ahead.