If you’ve been driving as long as I have, you are bound to have experienced a driver or two who like to make up their own rules for the road. One of our team members, at Seneca Meadows, recently experienced just such a driver at a local intersection. It was a single lane road with no turning lane, and in the middle of her right hand turn, she glanced in her rear view mirror to see a truck passing her on the right. Scary stuff.
Thankfully, she avoided a collision by putting safe driving tips into action. Here are some of the intersection safety tips we offer our team.
- Don’t drive distracted
- Signal early
- Upon approach, scan the intersection far ahead for possible hazards
- Slow down
- Know your vehicle’s turning radius, length and width
- As soon as it’s legal, get completely into the turning lane
- Adjust your speed and shift into the correct gear that you will use throughout the turn
- Stay completely in your lane, but gradually move to the left side of the lane for right turns or the right side of lane for left turns
- Determine the distance from the intersection to start maneuver
- Frequently look in the mirrors on the side of your vehicle that is in the direction you are turning
- Turn sharply and smoothly, and accelerate slowly
- Check your mirrors and adjust your path as necessary
- Continue to scan your mirrors for additional hazards
- Be prepared and able to stop if hazards appear
Kyle Black is the district manager for Seneca Meadows. Safety is the company’s number one core value, and weekly safety talks with employees are just one way that the company helps foster a safety culture. This is a feature special to FingerLakes1.com and was not written by any member of the FingerLakes1.com News staff.
