SURVIVE The Drive!
These are some of the things that drivers do or feel
when they're driving,which are the main causes of accidents.
Listen an interview with a traffic safety expert,after
note down a number or fact about each dangerous activity.
P = Presenter, T = Tom
P On today’s programme, we’re talking about how to drive safely.
There’s a great book called Survive the Drive that has lots of useful
tips, and we asked Tom, our transport and travel correspondent, to
take a look. Welcome, Tom.
T Thank you
P So, tell us – what’s the most dangerous thing you can do while
you’re driving?
Obviously, we’re not talking about drinking alcohol,
taking drugs, or using a handheld phone to make calls or text, which
everyone knows you must never do.
T Well, this is really surprising: top of the list is driving when you’re
feeling emotional.
The researchers found that you’re nearly ten times more likely to have an accident if you’re feeling very sad or angry or stressed.
If you’re emotional, then you can’t concentrate on the road, and you’ll probably make bad decisions if you find yourself in a dangerous situation.
In fact, if you’re feeling very emotional, it’d be better not to drive at all!
P Wow, OK. I’ll try to remember that next time I have a bad day at
work! What’s the second most dangerous thing?
T This one’s less surprising – it’s reaching for something in your car.
It might be your phone, or a map, or some sweets.
If you’re reaching down, or trying to get something from the back seat, then you aren’t
looking at the road, and you’re nine times more likely to have an accident.
P And number three?
T Number three is looking at something interesting or something
that’s happening by the road.
A really common example of this is when people slow down to look at an accident – they don’t realize that by looking at the accident and not at the road, the chance of
having an accident themselves goes up over seven times.
In fact, this is a really common cause of accidents on motorways.
P So the message is: don’t be distracted.
T Yes, exactly. If you’re driving fast, you can travel over one hundred
metres in less than three seconds.
And a lot can happen in three seconds.
P So that’s the top three – what about other things to avoid?
T Well, at number four is adjusting your satnav, which can be very distracting, and makes you nearly five times more likely to have an accident.
At number five is driving when you’re tired.
Sixty per cent of drivers say they’ve driven when tired in the last year, so it’s a big
problem – and you can lose control of your car completely.
And at number six is adjusting your radio or music system. This makes you
twice as likely to have an accident. Again, it’s the distraction from the
road that’s the problem, and only having one hand on the wheel.
P And the last two?
T The seventh is eating or drinking, because again, you normally
take one hand off the wheel, and
the eighth is talking to a passenger, which can be distracting because the driver often turns to look at the passenger.
P So how would you summarize the research?
What did you find most interesting?
T I think for me, the most interesting thing is that some of these things don’t seem very dangerous, and good drivers often do them – but the research shows that they are.
So next time you get in your car to drive somewhere, think about what you’re doing, and always, always keep your eyes on the road!
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