Safe Driving Practices

There were almost 36,000 injury-causing collisions on Ontario roads last year resulting in 49,601 people injured and another 483 killed. Officials of the provincial police identified speeding as a leading cause of fatal crashes on the roads patrolled by them. Drivers can help to ensure the safety of the occupants of their vehicles, drivers and passengers of other vehicles, and pedestrians by taking the time to review and implement a few safe driving practices.

Obey speed limits

Someone is injured every 1.4 hours in an accident caused by speeding. It might surprise you to know that driving slower than the prevailing speed of the other vehicles around you is not the way to make the roads safer. Drivers should try to stay with the flow of traffic without exceeding the speed limit.

Most roads have speed limit signs to alert you to the maximum speed. On roads without a posted speed limit, you should follow a maximum speed of 50 kph when driving within built up areas, including:

• Cities
• Villages
• Towns

When driving in other areas of Ontario, you should observe a maximum speed of 80 kph.

Maximum or posted speed limits are a guide for drivers. It is up to each driver to determine whether a slower speed is safer in view of road or weather conditions. For example, you should drive at a speed that will allow you to safely stop your vehicle, so rain, snow or ice should cause you to slow down regardless of the posted or area speed limit.

Other factors that could affect the speed at which you drive are the following:

• Unlit or poorly lit roads at night could warrant a reduction in speed
• Reduce your speed to avoid being too close to the car ahead of you
• Reduce your speed in a construction zone or school zone
• Slow down when approaching emergency vehicles or disabled vehicles on the shoulder of the road

If you are late for an appointment, call ahead to let them know you will be late instead of risking an accident by exceeding the speed limit.

Use your seatbelt

Use of seatbelts in Canada saves about 1,000 lives each year. Not only is seatbelt use by all occupants of a vehicle the smart and safe thing to do, it is also the law. As the driver, you are responsible for ensuring that children younger than 16 years of age are wearing a seatbelt or seated in an age-appropriate child’s car seat or booster seat.

Watch out for blind spots

Know the blind spots of your vehicle. Every vehicle has an area on each side where other vehicles cannot be seen by the driver. Adjust your sideview mirrors to provide maximum coverage to each side of your vehicle, but you should turn your head and look before changing lanes to make certain there is nothing in the way.

Avoid distracted driving

Officials in Ontario report that distracted driving is responsible for one injury-causing accident every 30 minutes. If you are like most people, you might assume distracted driving is caused by texting or talking on a cellphone. You would only be partially correct.

There are many activities drivers engage in that can cause them to be distracted from what is happening on the road ahead of them. Among some of the common distraction-causing activities drivers engage in are the following:

• Adjusting the radio
• Entering an address into a vehicle’s GPS
• Eating
• Personal grooming
• Reading
• Looking at maps

Distracting activities should only be engaged in when you are not driving and the car is safely parked.

Personal injury lawyers to handle injury claims

When other drivers fail to engage in safe driving practices, accidents can occur. The personal injury lawyers at Diamond & Diamondare there to handle your claim for compensation if you are injured in a vehicle accident caused by the negligence of another driver. Our 24/7 injury hotline is available at 1-800-567-HURT or you can visit our website to speak to someone now about your claim. Consultations are free, and we have offices are located throughout Ontario.