Asher Ricard

Passing The Driving Test: Do You Know The Laws For Safe Summer Travel



Posted: Saturday, June 14, 2008

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I have to admit I am not a good driver. I am one of those clich drivers that have so many distractions going on that often times I end up at a destination not knowing how I even made it there alive. Between the cell phone, the radio, screaming kids, trying to get the air the right temperature and the drinks and food, it is a wonder I am still alive. I am not the typical woman, however. I at least wait until stop lights to do makeup instead of doing it while driving. Granted, sometimes I am the last to notice when the light turns green.

Imagine my surprise to find out that the majority of accidents aren't caused by me and my distractions, although many are caused by cell phone use and other distractions. According to a 2007 GMAC Insurance National Drive Test study, 36 million licensed drivers in the United States would fail the driving test if they had to take it today with no preparation. That is one in six drivers would flunk the test!

I know you are thinking that you are definitely one of the five drivers who could pass the test without preparation. See how you do on these questions from the typical driving test.

  1. As a general rule, how many seconds should you be able to count between you and the vehicle in front of you?

  2. How many feet before a right or left turn should you signal?

  3. What type of traffic sign is diamond shape?

  4. When making a left-hand turn, should you yield to oncoming traffic, pedestrians or both?

  5. When approaching a steady yellow traffic light, what is the correct course of action?

I will give you the answers at the end. I am curious how well you did. I know the first time I took the quiz I was in shock at how little I did remember. But I should be cut some slack since it has been 16 years, right.

According to the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, at least one out of five drivers don't know that pedestrian has the right-of-way at a marked or unmarked crosswalk. Therefore nearly half of all pedestrian injuries occur with vehicles at intersections. This is common sense people. If you don't yield for a person, a car will injure him. Just show some common courtesy at least.

I am not sure what is sadder. The fact that half of all Americans report they don't know how to merge into heavy traffic or interpret road signs or that 60 percent say they change lanes without signaling. I can tell you in the major city traffic areas, these are qualities all drivers need to know how to do and do it regularly.

Oh and next time you want to yell at that blue hair holding up traffic-realize they are leveling the statistics out. Younger drivers ages 18 to 24 are more likely to fail their driving test than the 50 to 64 age range. The younger drivers are more likely to speed and participate in those distracting activities mentioned earlier.

The correct answers for the above quiz are as follows:

  1. At least two seconds. Double that amount if driving in bad weather conditions.

  2. Laws may vary by state, but a good rule of thumb is at least a 100 feet.

  3. A warning sign is shaped like a diamond so pay attention.

  4. Both

  5. Stop if it is safe to do so.



Be sure and share how many you got right in the comments. With summer travel in full swing, remember to follow traffic laws and get rid of those car distractions for a safe vacation.

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