Toyota Safety

In today's day and age, driving can be extremely hazardous. With the addition of newfound driving distractions, such as cell phone usage and text messaging, combined with the aggressiveness and carelessness of certain drivers, accidents are not as uncommon as one might think. In fact, approximately six million vehicle collisions occur on America's roads each year. [source: NHTSA] While it is impossible to prevent accidents entirely, there are ways to decrease one's chances of being involved in a collision. But how is this possible? The answer is simple: defensive driving.

Defensive driving is all about anticipation. Drivers who practice defensive driving are cautious in their driving style, yet decisive in their actions. Simply stated, the goal of any defensive driver is to evade dangerous driving situations with planned resolve.

Although there is no specific guide to defensive driving, there are certain things drivers should be mindful of when trying to adopt a defensive driving style. In particular, drivers hoping to assume a defensive driving style should concern themselves with the following: focus, control, caution and safety.

Focus is more difficult to achieve than one might think, especially when considering the sheer volume of distractions available to drivers today. For instance, common driver distractions include: eating, disciplining children, mobile electronics usage, grooming, reading and more. While a decided effort to abandon such distractions when driving is a step in the right direction toward adopting a defensive driving style, it is still incomplete.

Though maintaining focus is critical when driving defensively, asserting control is equally important. No matter how calculated one's driving may be, there will always be other drivers on the road whose driving styles are more lax if not downright reckless. In any event, it is important to be in control at all times. Whether control implies command of your vehicle or command of your body, it is important to make sure that any decisions made while driving are both deliberate and authoritative.

While maintaining focus and control seem obvious gestures when driving defensively, caution is sometimes harder to sustain, especially as more and more drivers become deceptively comfortable behind the wheel. The truth is, even the best drivers in the world need to be wary of other drivers on the road. Maintaining control over one’s actions is one thing, but anticipating the actions of others is another thing. Therefore, showing caution while driving, whether it be allowing extra space between vehicles or driving at slower speeds, is vital when adopting a defensive driving style.

Lastly, despite one's best efforts to avoid vehicle collisions, the fact of the matter is accidents do happen. For that reason, ensuring that one’s vehicle is equipped with safety accessories (like airbags, ABS brakes and traction-control systems, etc.) is important to help ensure one's safety. Many auto manufacturers, like Toyota, are constantly raising the bar in terms of safety standards when producing new vehicles. Therefore, obtaining such safety accessories has become easier.

In summary, defensive driving is a powerful tool when trying to lessen one’s chances of being involved in a collision. Being mindful of certain driving aspects such as focus, control, caution and safety is essential to adopting a defensive driving style.