Driving More Safely and More Economically

Some more observations on how people drive, at least here in the big city and its environs.

There's no doubt that big-city drivers drive very aggressively. This may consist of various unsafe behaviors such as aggressively changing lanes and weaving in and out in an attempt to pass everybody out (this counts as road rage and could get you a ticket). Another such behavior is what is known as "late merging."

I think there are at least two things behind this aggressive behavior behind the wheel. One is a sort of competitiveness. I'm not sure if these guys and gals are trying to prove their driving skill or to show that they and their vehicles can get to some point down the road more quickly than the rest of us—which might be the same thing.

Another is just being in a hurry. I already wrote about how nowadays everybody seems to be in a rush--at least in the city; if one goes to some other areas, as I found for example in driving through Michigan's Upper Peninsula one time, there definitely is a slower pace to things. But in urban areas such as mine, everyone seems to live by the axiom that "time is money."

Besides being in the main unsafe, a lot of these behaviors also waste fuel. Saving gas, on the other hand, not only benefits your pocketbook, it benefits the environment. One way that I try to drive more economically: I try to look ahead and when I see a red light, even a block down the road, I slow down—unlike many drivers who seem to me to be foolishly racing to get to that red light. Remember that your brakes are basically turning your gasoline into heat energy that goes into the atmosphere; in other words, it's wasted energy.

Of course we have to brake sometimes. Maybe often. But intelligent driving can lessen how much fuel you are wasting at your brake rotors. I try to avoid braking from 30 or even 20 mph, so I try to coast to a stop whenever I can.

Do you brake very often? Maybe you're not aware of how much you brake, but someone driving behind you can see how often your brake lights come on—more often than mine do. If you brake an awful lot, chances are that you're following too closely. By keeping a greater distance between myself and the car ahead of me, I'm able to brake much less than some other cars I see on the road.

And another peril of following too closely: There wouldn't--logically there couldn't--be 30-car or even 100-car pileups if drivers gave themselves enough distance to stop in, rather than following too closely for conditions.

Copyright © 2010 by Richard Stein

More on SUVs

An article on AOL Autos, on the new (2011) Ford Explorer SUV reminds us of all the news that surrounded the Explorer a decade ago, when there were many rollover accidents involving Explorers and resulting in some 150 deaths.

While the tires (Firestone) supplied on the Explorers got a lot of the blame, the NHTSA (National Highway Traffic Safety Administration) stated, after its investigations into the accidents, that driver error may have been to blame.

The fact is, taller vehicles such as SUVs (all things being equal) have a higher center of gravity and will be more prone to roll over. That's simple and inexorable physics. Presumably many of the people who own and drive SUVs are not prepared to take account of their vehicles' handling characteristics, particularly the vehicles' handling characteristics in an emergency situation.

These owners and drivers are not properly aware that they are not driving cars. They think they've got cars but with the ability to absolutely stick to the road on snow and ice. Many have learned, to their sorrow, that that's not the case.

Also, too many drivers of SUVs—as with other vehicles—can be seen driving while talking on cell phones, maybe making left turns with one hand on the wheel. I am sure any driving teacher tries to tell student drivers that a vehicle is properly controlled only with both hands on the wheel. I think that, particularly in the case of SUVs, you have a perhaps three-ton lethal weapon which is not being properly controlled.

So, given drivers' ignorance of SUVs' characteristics or their disregard of those vehicle characteristics, I think there is a job of education that needs to be done. As I said, some of the larger SUVs weigh three tons. They can be deadly weapons, given the harm that can occur to a smaller vehicle when it is hit by a monster SUV, and need to be driven with more responsibility.

Copyright © 2010 by Richard Stein

It Takes Nerves of Steel to Drive in the City

In New York City, every part of the state that is not NYC is "upstate." Here in Illinois, the corresponding term—for any thing that is not Chicago—is downstate.

I have friend who lives downstate, and he avoids visiting Chicago because he is terrified of driving in the Chicago area.

I can't entirely blame him. I've lived here for a long time, and I can still see how it can be scary. It's even hard for me to take it in stride sometimes.

There is definitely a big-city style of driving. On the expressways, people drive very aggressively. They change lanes when, rationally, it would be to no advantage, and they will cut in front of you very sharply. No one wants to drive in the right lane, it seems, so when it's time to exit they will just cut across several lanes and cut sharply in front of you.

And people rubber-necking if there's any incident: a car pulled over by cops or an accident or a car on fire, or whatever. I wish people could overcome their desire to gawk and not slow down, because that creates the proverbial "gapers' block."

And of course (as I mentioned in another blog posting), everyone is in a hurry these days. And I find it pretty scary when people follow too closely, and are talking on their cell phones, to boot. If they are not giving their undivided attention to driving, and they have to stop suddenly, they are going to crash right into the rear of some poor schlub like yours truly.

And driving on non-highway streets and roads has its own set of perils. Streets unmarked by road signs, speed bumps, bad pavement, red-light cameras, double-parked cars. Plus, again, crazy drivers, like taxi drivers, who drive very, very aggressively. Last time I used a taxi the driver wanted to use his cell phone while driving. I had to tell him not to. I'm told that's actually common, but I'm incredulous.

Copyright © 2010 by Richard Stein