How do we combat the massive issue of trying to modify the way that we drive on our nation’s roads in order to make it a safer option for those that get behind the wheel of their vehicle? Firstly we must look at the number one leading cause of collisions on the nation’s roads. Lane changing may seem like a relatively safe task to complete for many of us. But have you ever been traveling along, minding your own business when a driver just ahead of you in the next lane decides to pull over into your lane and nearly wipe you off the road? What about when you have seen the traffic slowing ahead and decide to jump lanes and take a quick look at your mirrors and decide it’s safe, only to pull out and have the enormous honking and yelling from the driver you nearly side swiped?
This is all due to the common and often overlooked safety hazard; the blind spot. Think about the average motor vehicle on today’s roads.Every single vehicle traveling on our roads today has a blind spot.As a matter of fact buses, trucks and motorcycles all have blind spots as well. This makes for a wide-ranging number of cars on our roads that are unbelievably precarious when switching lanes.
Perhaps if you took your eyes off the road while you were commuting at around 50 miles an hour, and twisted in your seat to look over your shoulder to check your blind spot you would see just how dangerous this maneuver is for even the best of drivers. And yet this is what we teach our kids to do when they are learning how to drive. It is no wonder there are so many deaths on our roads.