ANNOYIINGHABIITS

Being courteous on the road is awin-win, making journeys safer and more enjoyable

Everyday life can be hectic— even more so on those weekends when it seems everyone has the same idea togoto exactly the same place.

Courtesy and respect for fellow road users is an easy win that canmake driving more enjoyable— and at times even reduce the overall time of your journey.

Unfortunately, commoncourtesy is not thatcommonat all.

Driving while under the influence, dangerous driving and road rage are all extreme examples of disrespectful driving. But far morecommondiscourtesies that drivers can lapse into include being distracted, driving too slow, failing to indicate or tailgating. Here aresometips to keep the “red mist” at bay:

● Remain calm, relaxed and alert.

● Drive defensively and make allowances for errors by others.

● Adopt a “share the road” rather than a “mefirst” approach to driving.

● Use the horn only as awarning device.

● Leave unpleasant encounters or delays in the past and concentrate on the rest of the trip.

● Don’t try to police others’ behaviour.

● Leave the windows upif prone to yelling at other road users.

● Follow the signs. Large road signs are placed aroundnewzealand to emphasise the importance of driver behaviour and personal responsibility on the road. Examples include: passing lane etiquette (“Stay in the left lanes”) andhowto merge (“Merge like a zip”). You’ll also see reminders that stress and fatigue can reduce concentration and tolerance and increase the risk of being involved in a crash.

Five types of driverwho commonlyfrustrate motorists

THETEXTER/NAVEL-GAZER Texting while driving is illegal and it can be even more dangerous than talking on your phone. Taking your eyes off the road can cause catastrophic accidents: texting drivers have been found to be 23 times more likely to crash.

THENON-INDICATOR Over-used or under-used— there doesn’t seem to be a happymediumto indicator use innewzealand. We’ve seen people indicating around a sharp corner, then watched in awe as they’ve pulled over to the side and stopped without somuchas aglance in the mirror, let alone a signal. There are also those infuriatingdriverswho indicate as they are making the manoeuvre, or give you a tiny, single blink when it’s way too late to be of any use.

THECRAWLER

There are times and places where travelling below the speed limit makes sense, but somepeople drive so slowly that it frustrates the people around them. This can lead to risky manoeuvres to get past. It can be even worse when a slow driver speeds up when they reach apassing lane or sits in the outside lane, oblivious to the long tail of traffic stuck behind them. It’s okay togo slower than the flow, but keep left and look for opportunities to let others past.

THETAILGATER

To a large extent, the evolutionary biproduct of the oblivious fast-lane sitter. Having someone following so close that you can see their eyeballs can be pretty intimidating— if you have to stop suddenly you know it won’t endwell for either of you. Things can really escalate if the recipient of the tailgate retaliatesby brake-checking (a sharp stab on the brakes as awarning).

It’s a two-way street; courtesy on the road also involves recognising and accepting responsibility for our actions and not holding agrudge against fellow road users. It is about being forgiving and making allowances, recognising that youwill also benefit when goodwill is reciprocated. This helps improve overall road safety.

THEAMBERGAMBLER

It might be exhilarating to speed up to just scrape through a traffic light, but it’s not worth the risk— it’s abad habit that could lead to major collisions.

Sometraffic light transitions are longer than others but responsible driving means slowingdownand stopping when the light turns amber amber or conversely, it could meancontinuing on unabated, as it's similarly dangerous to jump on the brakes at the first flash of amber.