Defensive Driving

It is driving to save lives, time, and money, in spite of the conditions around you and the actions
of others.

 General principles:

 Controlling your speed.

 Looking ahead and expecting the unexpected.

 Being alert and distraction free.

 Regarding other participants in traffic:

 Preparedness for all sorts of actions and reactions of other drivers, pedestrians and
animals like dogs, pigs, cats, cows, buffaloes, etc.

 Not expecting the other drivers to do what you would ordinarily do.

 Watching and respecting other drivers.

 Regarding your own vehicle:

 Maintaining a safe following distance.

 Driving safely considering (adjusting for) weather and/or road conditions.

 Adjusting your speed before entering a bend, in order to avoid applying the brakes
in the middle of a bend.

 Respect others – Treat other drivers the way you want to be treated and give them space so that they feel safe.
 Be alert – Pay attention to what other drivers are doing to avoid any potential hazards.
 Be aware – Stay alert for anything that could put you in danger.

o Knowing the rules of the road and safe driving practices, and knowing how to safely operate ones
vehicle

o Being alert to potentially dangerous situations, including the weather, adverse conditions, other
drivers and changing traffic conditions

o Having the foresight to respond to another driver’s unsafe actions, such as speeding and dangerous
driving

o Having the judgment to make decisions and act with the minimal possible risk

o Possessing the skill to adapt and drive safely in changing conditions and in different driving scenarios
1. Think safety first. Avoiding aggressive and inattentive driving tendencies yourself will
put you in a stronger position to deal with other people's bad driving. Leave plenty of
space between you and the car in front. Always lock your doors and wear your seatbelt to
protect you from being thrown from the car in a crash.

2. Be aware of your surroundings — pay attention. Check your mirrors frequently and
scan conditions 20 to 30 seconds ahead of you. Keep your eyes moving and attentive at
all times. If a vehicle is showing signs of aggressive driving, slow down or pull over to
avoid it. If the driver is driving so dangerously that you're worried, try to get off the
roadway by turning right or taking the next exit if it's safe to do so. Also, keep an eye on
pedestrians, bicyclists, and animals along the road.

3. Do not depend on other drivers. Be considerate of others but look out for yourself. Do
not assume another driver is going to move out of the way or allow you to merge.
Assume that drivers will run through red lights or stop signs and be prepared to react.
Plan your movements anticipating the worst-case scenario.

4. Follow the 3- to 4-second rule. Since the greatest chance of a collision is in front of you,
using the 3- to 4-second rule will help you establish and maintain a safe following
distance and provide adequate time for you to brake to a stop if necessary. But this rule
only works in normal traffic under good weather conditions. In bad weather, increase
your following distance an additional second for each condition such as rain, fog,
nighttime driving, or following a large truck or motorcycle.

5. Keep your speed down. Posted speed limits apply to ideal conditions. It's your
responsibility to ensure that your speed matches conditions. In addition, higher speeds
make controlling your vehicle that much more difficult if things go wrong. To maintain
control of your vehicle, you must control your speed.

6. Have an escape route. In all driving situations, the best way to avoid potential dangers is
to position your vehicle where you have the best chance of seeing and being seen. Having
an alternate path of travel also is essential, so always leave yourself an out — a place to
move your vehicle if your immediate path of travel is suddenly blocked.

7. Separate risks. When faced with multiple risks, it's best to manage them one at a time.
Your goal is to avoid having to deal with too many risks at the same time.

8. Cut out distractions. A distraction is any activity that diverts your attention from the
task of driving. Driving deserves your full attention — so stay focused on the driving
task. Never take your eyes off the road.

9. Use education, engineering, enforcement, environment, emergency care. Teach road

safety principles, remove blind spots, use automatic number plate recorder (ANPR), etc.
Distraction-Free Driving

There are many distractions that can take your attention away from the road. The good news is
there are ways to avoid them. Keep these steps in mind to help you drive distraction free:

1 - Learn your A-B-C’s – Make this part of your routine before you start the car: adjust your
mirrors, buckle your seatbelt, check on your passengers and car tyres before stepping inside.

2 - Plan your route – Looking at directions on a phone or map means taking your eyes off the
road. Plan your route ahead of time or download a navigation app with voice-directed guidance.

3 - Hang up – Focus on what’s ahead and never text or talk on the phone while driving. Take
your vehicle to the side of the road, stop the vehicle and then only talk if it is very urgent.

4 - Faster without food – It’s tempting to eat and drive, but when you take a bite or fumble
around the bag you’re not paying attention, so enjoy your food after arriving at your destination.

5 - Promote peaceful passengers – Driving is not the time for arguments or crying kids. Keep
conversations to a reasonable minimum. If you need them to be quiet, tell them.

6 - Don’t let music distract – Listening to soft music isn’t dangerous, but fiddling with the dials
can be. Create a playlist and keep the volume at a reasonable level.

7 - Be well rested – Driving drowsy is the same as driving intoxicated! If you’re too tired to
drive, pull off the road and rest. Take breaks frequently or as required. Make sure to get adequate
rest before long trips. Don’t drive while you are upset.

8 - Don’t drive drunk – Driving impaired affects judgment and reaction time. Getting a DUI
will cause you to lose your license and increase insurance rates. Worse yet, it can result in lives
hurt and lost: Don’t drive drunk or under the influence of drugs.

9 - Don’t become inattentive – Stay relaxed but totally focused. Don’t lose attention and ‘zone
out’ or drive in ‘auto pilot mode’. Concentrate on your journey, not on your pending issues.

10 - Don’t fail to adjust to adverse weather conditions – Slow down while it’s raining. Allow
for longer stopping distances. Adjust for poor visibility by following the previous car’s tail lights

11 - Don’t drive aggressively – Drive safely by remaining calm. Allow yourself ample time to
make the trip. Don’t get into ‘competitive mode’, tailgate, jump red lights and stop signs.

12 - Don’t change lanes without checking blind spots – Signal, check mirrors, glance around
quickly and make the lane change gradually giving wide berth to overtaking vehicle.
o Scanning the roadway and adapting to surroundings

o Employing the two-second to eight-second rule for following distances in dry and wet
conditions respectively

o Knowing your vehicle’s stopping distance

o Being aware of reaction distance

o Environment hazards

o Vehicle emergencies

o Sharing the road

o Passing with necessary clear distance

o Right of way – when reaching an intersection at about the same time, the vehicle on the
right should be allowed to go across first. Pedestrians should be allowed to cross the road
first.

o Speed and direction adjustments at railroad crossings and while negotiating bad roads,
dips, bumps and speed breakers. Cross railway tracks at 90o and extra-high speed
breakers at an angle so that the car’s under-carriage does not touch the road.

 Plan ahead for the unexpected.

 Be able to control speed
 Be Prepared to react to other drivers
 Do not expect the other driver to do what you think he or she should do
 Respect other users of the roadway.
 Be aware of driving in special road and weather conditions
 Be alert and avoid distractions, e.g., cell phone use, eating, listening to music, etc.
 Always wear seatbelts in a car and crash helmets with chin guards on a two-wheeler
 Avoid distractions
 Do not cross the speed limits
 Service your vehicle regularly
 Follow traffic signals
 Maintain lane discipline
 Be extra careful during bad weather
 Maintain a safe distance from the previous vehicle
 Always overtake from the right keeping a safe distance and after checking that no
speeding vehicle is coming from behind in both the rear and side view mirrors.
 Give way for emergency vehicles like ambulance, fire tender, police car, etc.
 Stop, look, listen, think and then cross road. Don’t panic or hurry and run across.
 Always carry driving licence and vehicle registration, insurance and PUC papers.
 Start early so that you don’t reach your destination late or never at all!
FROM IRC: 67-2012

CODE OF PRACTICE FOR ROAD SIGNS (Third Revision)

INDIAN ROADS CONGRESS

2012
DETERMINATION OF "X" HEIGHT FOR DIRECTION SIGNS
(SHOULDER & GANTRY MOUNTED)
From the diagrams, "C" is the distance from the sign where a driver is
expected to stop reading the sign .i.e. the point where a driver would
turn his head through 10° or more.
i.e. C = S x cotangent 10° = S x 5.7
"S" is the off-set distance from the centre of the driving lane to the
centre of the sign. This is measured from the centre of the right-hand-
most lane on a dual carriageway.
"R" is the distance travelled while reading the sign.
Distance (R) = Reading Time x Speed
Reading time = 2 + (N/3) seconds; where N is the number of words or
destinations on the sign. When N equals 6 the reading time is taken as 4
seconds. It allows driver to scan the sign twice to assimilate the
information. The sign may be obscured for part of the time by virtue of
other vehicles and the driver still needs to pay attention to the road
ahead.