Trending in Jamaica News: Jamaican drivers do not understand the basic rules of safe driving.
There are too many fatal accidents occurring on Jamaican highways. And it appears speed plays a significant role in most of these accidents. This makes me wonder whether Jamaican drivers understand the fundamentals of safe driving.
I know it is tempting to increase speeds, especially when travelling on good roads such as the ones in St Ann, St James and Trelawny. But it is the responsibility of every driver to practice safe driving, resist the temptation of exceeding speed limits, and maintain control of the vehicle.
Friday’s horrific collision involving a Guardsman bus and a Toyota Wish motor car on the Laughland Main road took one man’s life and injured 14 people. But it could have been avoided if both drivers had practised safe driving.
Safe driving tips
Some of the rules of safe driving are the driver should
- Scan the roadway side to side
- Scan ahead; about two blocks
- Glance in your rearview mirror every eight seconds
- Depending on your speed, maintain a safe following distance-about 4 seconds (increase your following distance as you increase your speed).
- Leave yourself an out. This means giving yourself enough time to take evasive action.
- Avoid the blind spot of the other driver.
- Practice safe overtaking (only overtake if you have enough space to pass the vehicle in front of your’s and get back into your lane safely)
- Avoid following too close to big vehicles. If you can’t see their rearview mirror, they can’t see you.
- Avoid distractions like cell phones, car stereos and tablets while driving.
- Don’t be selfish on the roadways. Always drive with other road users in mind.
- It is better to be 5 minutes late for your appointment than 5 minutes early for your grave.
One of the big culprits in traffic accidents is a distraction. If you are distracted, you are not entirely in control of the vehicle. Hence, a distracted driver is as dangerous as a criminal with a gun. Therefore, drivers should keep their eyes on the road and their hands on the wheel. Because it only takes one second of distraction to cause an accident.
Another culprit in traffic accidents is drowsiness. A tired person should avoid driving. It is dangerous, especially if you are doing long distances.
When I analysed the photo of the St Ann collision, it appears both drivers committed road traffic breaches. Both drivers never used their rearview mirrors to ensure it was safe to overtake. Jamaicans drive on the left side of the road, and it is clear that both vehicles were in the process of overtaking on the right.