If you have teen drivers in your home, of course you want to help them avoid traffic collisions in Hollywood or your community. You want to teach your children to be safe drivers and to avoid the dangers of the roads.
One issue which can especially affect safety on the roads where young drivers are concerned involves trucks. Large commercial trucks, such as big rigs and tankers, require different skills than passenger cars. Driving around these larger vehicles can be a challenge for new drivers, and you need to ensure your child is ready to share the road with larger vehicles before allowing them to drive by themselves.
There are several ways you can ensure your child is ready to drive on highways and around trucks:
1) Evaluate your child’s attention.
Does your daughter or son pay attention when driving? Are they driving defensively or simply steering? Defensive driving is an important factor when learning to drive around trucks.
Your child should always be thinking three moves ahead and should be aware of the cars and trucks 6-8 vehicles ahead of them. If a truck suddenly has a tire blowout or has to break suddenly well ahead of them on the highway, your child is more likely to be a trucking collision if they aren’t aware and scanning ahead.
2) Look to where your child’s eyes go.
Your teen driver should be able to turn on the headlights and use controls without looking away from the road. If they can’t, this means they’re moving their eyes from the road for long enough to cause an accident. On highways around large trucks, especially, a few seconds of break in concentration can be enough to cause an accident. If your child still has to look for controls, that may be an indication they’re not quite ready to drive by themselves.
3) Make sure your child not only knows but obeys the rules of the road.
Before your teen driver is allowed to drive by themselves on highways and around trucks, you should make sure that they are stopping at stop lines, driving within lanes, using turning signals, and adjusting their driving for poor lighting or poor weather conditions. If your child is taking risks on the road, those risks become considerably more dangerous when large trucks are around.
4) Be realistic about your child’s maturity level.
Driving a passenger car is driving a lethal weapon. It only becomes far more dangerous when commercial trucks are around. Small mistakes on your child’s part can mean a serious crash. Make sure your child is responsible and mature enough to avoid peer pressure to speed and to drive recklessly. If your child still has some maturing to do, there’s nothing wrong with putting more rules in place and waiting for a little while before allowing them to drive by themselves on highways.
5) Make sure your child has had enough practice.
Before your child drives alone, especially on highways, make sure they have been driving with you for at least six months. Make sure they have taken drivers’ education and have gotten private lessons to address any concerns you have about their driving ability. The more time your child spends driving with you and other responsible adults, the more they hone their skills so they’re safe on the roads.
Have you been injured by a reckless driver? Has your teen suffered a serious injury in a car accident in Hollywood or your community? Contact Flaxman Law Group for a free accident consultation to discuss the situation. You may have a personal injury claim that allows you to seek compensation for the injuries you have suffered.