What is safe driving?

Thailand’s roads and highways are shared by drivers with widely differing abilities and perceptions; they are driving various types of vehicles. Where there is plenty of room for all, driving is relatively easy, but high traffic volume and physical road layout limitations create stress and frustration. Experienced drivers usually adopt a comfort zone that they feel balances risk, safety, and the law. This zone may seriously underestimate the dangers involved. Perception of one’s own driving ability and our attitude towards other road users has a big influence on everyone's road safety. Involvement in an automobile accident is not, by itself, an indication of unsafe driving. However, if drivers adopt safer driving practices they will be involved in fewer accidents. It is the goal of Safe Driver Education Company limited to teach safe driving methods to our students.

Is legal driving the same as safe driving?   - The definition of legal driving is a simple one; driving within the limits of the law. Safe driving, on the other hand, is driving so as to substantially reduce the risk of accidents and near-accidents. However, some "legal" behavior is clearly not safe behavior. For example:

• Quick starts  - A driver stopped at a red light who responds to a green signal by accelerating quickly (providing they yield to others already in the intersection), is practicing legal but unsafe driving. It is not a rare event for vehicles to run a red light. Looking both to the left and right before proceeding, especially if first in line at a green light, is an absolutely essential safety habit. It is not required by law but will substantially reduce the risk of a collision at an intersection.
• Vision impairment  – it is not illegal in   Thailand to put film and stickers on windshield and other glass areas of the car. However, the serious reduction of the driver’s ability to see and react to hazards. The safe driver will assure he has excellent vision through all glass areas of his vehicle.

 

Is illegal driving unsafe? -  Unsafe or risky driving can be defined as any action or lack of action on the part of the driver that increases their risk of a collision. Exceeding the legal speed limit is not necessarily unsafe, because safe speeds must be judged with reference to prevailing traffic and weather conditions.  The problem is that those who regularly drive too fast do not perceive themselves as being unsafe. They're happy with the way they drive and see no need to change. One often sees motorists on   Thailand’s express-ways driving faster than the posted speed limit. It may even be unsafe to drive the legal speed limit in face of others driving faster.

 

Let's examine a few of the common illegal driving behaviors that many drivers admit to: 

• Aggressive drivers   - Many drivers who are too fast, aggressive and inconsiderate do not perceive themselves as being unsafe. They're happy with the way they drive, and see other drivers as the problem.
• Safe driving distance  - One of the most common risky driving acts is following too closely in traffic. Experts have determined that under ideal conditions, a minimum safe following distance of three seconds (Safe Driver Education recommends four seconds on Thailand’s roads) is sufficient to avoid most rear-end collisions. However, the   Thailand traffic law does not state what the distance should be it only vaguely requires that drivers follow at a reasonable distance. Such laws are rarely enforced, so this reckless behavior continues.
• Speeding   - The vast majority of drivers find it acceptable to drive in excess of posted speed limits. With confidence, our perception of speed changes, and legal limits become a source of frustration. We know that the higher a car's speed, the longer it will take to bring it to a stop, but the risk involved feels acceptable. The fact that excessive speed is a factor in nearly one third of all fatal crashes doesn't affect the unsafe driver. Vehicle speed reduces the amount of available time needed to avoid a crash, increases the likelihood of crashing, and increases the severity of a crash once it occurs.

 

What is safe driving?  - Safe driving is the act of maintaining adequate margins of safety around a vehicle at all times and in all circumstances. Safe driving focuses on reducing the risks and avoiding hazards. 

When confronted with a potential road hazard coming into sight, safe drivers respond by covering their brake pedal with the right foot, applying only enough pressure to turn on their brake lights. The benefits are three-fold. The right foot is ideally situated to commence a panic stop, the stop-lamps alert other drivers to potential danger, and the gradual slowing of the vehicle allows more time for emergency maneuvers. 

Driver attitude determines how knowledge and skills will be used. It shapes the driver’s style towards being cooperative or competitive. It determines how safely and well we drive. Our behavior on the road is first influenced at a young age by watching how our parents and other road users drive, then by the people we mix with socially and at work. Many Thai drivers shape their attitudes while driving a motorcycle.  Smart motoring is achieved through the habitual use of safety protocols by drivers who understand the limits of driver-car-roadway interactions. 

Safety protocols are needed  - 95% of road collisions result solely or partly from human error. Regardless of the numerous uncontrollable variables in each situation, a safe driver always consciously drives within a safety margin that is largely under his control. The driver is consciously adjusting safety margins to protect himself from negative consequences of his own or others' errors. 

Collision occurrence in relation to increasing speed and speed variability strongly suggests that drivers overestimate their skills and underestimate the safety margins appropriate to the situation.

Safety protocols stress that all drivers and pedestrians are equally at risk when they neglect the basic rules of road safety. A minimal amount of skill is required to learn them and once acquired, they are habitual and don't require the conscious participation of the driver. Safe Driver Education’s training programs focus on the best safety protocols: the correct driver responses to each potential collision situation, and not on driver error. There are a limited number of common collision situations, so the protocol guidelines need not be complicated to be fairly exhaustive. Both collisions and near-collisions can be studied from the perspective of these protocols in order to refine and update the safety rules, especially as new car technologies are implemented. 

A valid set of safety protocols are superior to the official rules of the road in that they do not ask drivers to assume that other drivers, pedestrians, cyclists, animals, etc will behave predictably.

 

The levels of driving ability

• Novice  - Although safety is a primary consideration, much of the novice driver's attention must be devoted to acquiring driving skills, and on learning the rules of the road. Basic driving skills are learned by direct feedback, with minimal instruction. New drivers have a tendency to underestimate reaction time and braking distance and have little understanding of safety protocols. Safe Driver Education’s novice driver curriculum emphasizes practice of good driving habits.
• Intermediate  – Once the novice driver has learned to distinguish between a threatening driver (aggressive - distracted - drunken) driver and a non-threatening one, they are ready to take their driver’s license examination with the Department of Land Transport. 
• Work related driving –  Most drivers will quickly begin to drive in work-related situations; either driving their own car for work purposes or driving a company car. In this situation they are driving with a specific goal in mind. They become driven by schedules and may follow other cars more closely than before, enter traffic more daringly, and knowingly violate the law if it fits their agenda. Safe Driver Education has programs to evaluate and retrain these drivers to protect themselves and their companies.
• Professional drivers  - All the rules necessary to the task have been acquired, and driving becomes autonomous. The expert driver becomes at one with the vehicle, his performance is inflexible and automatic. Unfortunately the highly skilled, expert, driver does not necessarily become a safer one. Unfortunately as drivers become more experienced their age begins to affect some of their physical capabilities.

 

Perception of ability  - Advanced driver training is about improving our perception of what is happening on the road. Better perception increases awareness and should therefore improve our judgments; decisions and ability to cope, so reducing accident risk. Vision for Safety if the theme of Safe Driver Education’s advanced driver training programs.

Some drivers argue that an increased level of skill removes the fear or respect for danger, creating more competent risk taking. However if you look at race car drivers, you'll find that the opposite is true. The more risks professional drivers take on the racecourse, the more accidents they experience. Racing drivers are known to have an above average number of traffic violations and collisions off the racecourse as well.

Reckless driving behavior may also be a result of personality, observation (learning from a parent), or uncorrected dangerous habits picked up along the way. Perhaps risky drivers were not shown safe driving skills at critical periods in the learning stages and may never develop safe driving habits. The only way an expert driver's performance can be measured against their perception is by enrolling in a professional driving school and passing top level driving skills tests. However, many of us, having passed the driving test see ourselves as motoring experts. Our accreditation is our driver's license. 

New drivers need to practice perceptive driving  - Perceptive driving is about being prepared for every eventuality. A clear road ahead is never empty! In order to respond to a problem, we have to see it. The frequency of the comment 'I just didn't see it…….' at the scene of a road traffic accident suggests a poor perception of the hazard because of weak observation. Experienced drivers adopt a certain comfort zone that they feel balances risk, safety, and the law. Perception of our own driving ability and our attitude towards other road users has a big influence on everyone's road safety. 

 

 

Driving and observational skills needed to cope with everyday driving:

• Assumptions -  The fact that a large proportion of motor vehicle accidents occur within 10 kilometers of our own home brings to light the fact that familiarity breeds complacency, especially when we are comfortable with our surroundings. Insurance industry statistics show that owners of high performance vehicles tend to drive faster and take more risks than owners of family sedans. The extra accidents and speeding fines incurred by their drivers show up in their insurance premiums. The most important thing about assumptions is that we can never assume the other driver will do the thing we expect him to do.
• Vision -  We need good vision and an ability to accurately judge the speed and distance of approaching traffic and other roadway hazards. While it is important to check our eyes for visual acuity we must also check for depth perception, color, peripheral vision, and recovery from glare. Glass areas on cars should be clear and unobstructed.
• Experience  - New drivers lack the ability to divide their attention between control and safety functions. Teen-age drivers in particular, perceive safety as being in direct conflict with their ultimate goal - mobility. Their choice of enhanced mobility, derived from driving at greater speed or in a more daring style, is made more attractive when the risks of detection by the police or involvement in a collision appear small. New drivers have a tendency to underestimate reaction time and braking distance. They do not know how fast their vehicle can negotiate tight corners on different types of roadways, and in varying weather conditions.
• External distractions  - Many rear-end and multi-car accidents occur when a driver becomes distracted by a roadway accident or rescue equipment in the opposite lane. A lapse of attention competes with the concentration about something else other than our driving, or letting someone else attract our attention will remove our concentration. 
• High standard of alertness  - Senses impaired by alcohol, anger, drugs (prescription or illicit), fatigue, or illness reduces our risk perception.
• In-car distractions -  Whenever you're driving a vehicle and your attention is not on the road, you're putting yourself, your passengers, other vehicles, and pedestrians in danger. Cell phones have gotten a lot of negative media attention recently -- but other more low-tech distractions cause many traffic accidents. Have you ever spilled hot coffee on yourself? Dropped something on the floor while driving? Read the paper on the way to work? These are some of the distractions drivers cited most frequently as reasons for their road traffic accidents. Teen drivers need to be aware that the pressure to show-off placed on them by other occupants of their vehicle unintentionally places all of the car's occupants and everyone else on the road in danger. 
• Vehicle characteristics -  Looking away from the road ahead to find or operate controls in an unfamiliar vehicle while driving can seriously limit the reaction time available to avoid an unexpected roadway hazard. Take the time to carefully note where all the important instruments and vehicle control systems are located prior to operating any unfamiliar vehicle. Make sure the rear and side view mirrors are properly adjusted, your seat and steering wheel settings are comfortable, and the climate control settings are appropriate for current conditions. Fiddling with an unfamiliar radio or climate control system is an oft-mentioned reason for having an accident.

 

Visual capability -  Uncorrected defective eyesight restricts the ability for drivers to make satisfactory distance judgments. Darkness and inclement weather can aggravate poor vision capabilities as well. Excellent reflexes and good driving skills are of little use if our eyesight is poor. Equally important is the glass area of your car. Any obstruction to your vision increases your risk of an accident significantly. Do not place stickers, advertising materials, toys and other artifacts, dark films and other opaque materials on or near your window areas. Make sure the glass is clean and well maintained for clear vision.