How to be a Better Driver

Image Credit: Unsplash

No matter how relaxed you might be behind the wheel, you should always remember that the road can be a dangerous place to be. With cars reaching ever greater speeds, more power and more tech than ever before, they might feel safer, but they are still basically a lot of metal hurtling towards you.

This is why becoming the best driver you can be is so important. In 2015, 254,561 people sustained injuries in 178,669 injury accidents (and you can read more at AitkenLaw.com/car-accidents/ about how people are affected by road traffic accidents) showing that now is definitely the time to think carefully about what it means to be a good driver.

Patience is a Virtue

There are a lot of annoying drivers on the road from the ones who dawdle along at well below the speed limit to the ones who drive right up the back of you and the overtake making rude hand gestures on a corner. These people are not your problem. You can’t shout at them to make them drive more sensibly or explain to them why they are causing problems. All you can do is be patient.

Patient drivers give other drivers on the road room, they slow gently and allow aggressive drivers to overtake where it is convenient and ignore the gestures. They concentrate on the road and stay focused without getting riled up and angry. The more patient you can be, the safer your driving will be and the better a driver you will become. And if it helps, the way that aggressive driver was behaving is already increasing their chance of wrapping themselves around a tree (and not in a good way).

Always Leave Enough Time for Your Journey

If there is one thing that can turn a terrific driver into a terrifying driver within minutes it is looking at the clock and realising that you are going to be late. No-one likes to arrive anywhere late and though it might be tempting to hit the accelerator and whip around corners a bit faster, this is not a smart move. You must avoid speeding.

Sometimes you can’t help being late and this is where patience comes in once again. You need to learn to look at the clock without immediately responding by increasing your speed. Accept that you will be a little bit late and either use voice controls to send a message or pull over to make the call.

Practise Your Skills - Especially in a New Car

Driving is not like riding a bike. Bike technology has remained fairly constant for a long time, whereas cars are getting new updates almost every week. This means that you need to practise your driving skills and this is even more important when you get a new car. Take it out for a drive at a quieter time of day to get used to its size, shape and functions. The last thing you want is to be late, hounded by an aggressive driver and distracted by a radio you don’t yet know how to turn off!

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