ROAD HAZARD PERCEPTION TEST DRIVERS
ROAD HAZARD PERCEPTION TEST DRIVER

Old people may not be able to see or hear very well or judge speed and distance, they will often need more time to cross the road. Are they alone? If one child runs or cycles into the road there will often be at least one more following footballs are followed by children cycles, seemingly abandoned at the side of the road, will mean that children are not far away. The type of road users ahead may also give you a clue of the potential dangers you may face.Ĭhildren, for example, have little time to consider road safety, they are far more interested in the game they are playing or the ice cream van they are running after.

ROAD HAZARD PERCEPTION TEST DRIVERS

When driving in strong wind, will the high-sided vehicle ahead remain stable as it crosses a gap in the hedge or buildingsĪlso consider the effects of water, ice and snow on the road surface will this cause other drivers to skid, aquaplane or swerve?

ROAD HAZARD PERCEPTION TEST DRIVER

Is the other driver being blinded by bright sunlight? Are the windows of other vehicles misty - can the driver see you? Consider not only how this may affect you but also how these conditions may affect other drivers. Therefore at night expect drivers to make more errors of judgement.īright sunlight, fog, rain and snow can also severely affect visibility. Meet situations that can be easily handled in daylight can become quite hazardous at night - particularly if there are no streetlights. This particularly affects your ability to judge speed and recognise small poorly lit objects such as pedestrians and cyclists.

At dusk and at night you lose the ability to see any detail and dark objects easily merge into the background. In a busy town or city centre it is unlikely that you will come across a wide agricultural vehicle, however, there may be one just around the corner on a narrow country road.Īlthough children can be present on the road at any time, they are out in force just before and after school. The location, time of day and weather can also help to prime your perception of what potential dangers you may encounter. It's imperative that you learn the meaning of all these road signs and markings and develop the habit of using them to help you consider what potential hazards may lay ahead. Solid white lines along the centre of the road on your side also warn you of an approaching hazard and are there to inform you not to overtake. For example the broken white centre line markings change on the approach to a hazard from this to this. Road markings can also warn you of a hazard ahead. There are also road signs that provide useful information, which may be used in conjunction with road markings. Place name signs or direction signs are usually rectangular with arrows or a diagram of the road layout ahead. Signs that give you an order or let you know what is not permitted on a particular stretch of road are usually circular with a red border.īlue circular or rectangular signs give you positive direction and indicate the flow or separation of traffic.Īt road works yellow rectangular signs are used to direct traffic or impose any temporary restrictions. Signs that are designed to warn or advise you of a hazard ahead are usually triangular with a red border. Therefore to become a perceptive driver you must get into the habit of looking for road signs and markings. Road signs and road markings are a very good example of this and yet few drivers learn to take note of them. Some clues help to prime your perception - to get you ready to look for a particular hazard ahead. As you will see good hazard perception combined with defensive driving will help to keep you and other road users safe. This clearly demonstrates the importance of anticipating what might happen and acting upon that rather than waiting until it actually happens. Very few people survive if a vehicle travelling at 40 MPH or more hits them. Indeed if you are travelling at 40 MPH or more you could call this area your killing zone because anyone that enters this area will most likely be killed. Anything that enters this zone will be hit.

You could call this braking distance in front of you your impact zone. Therefore even though you only double your speed from 30 MPH to 60 MPH your braking distance almost quadruples from 14 metres to 55 metres. Note how the distance it takes for the car to stop grows disproportionately to the speed. These distances assume you need no thinking time and can instantly apply the brakes as a child, or indeed other pedestrian, runs out in front of you. Even if you had lightening fast reactions you couldn't physically stop a car in fewer car lengths than those shown. If you doubt the need to do this and you feel that it is sufficient to rely on your reactions alone think again. Hazard perception is all about giving yourself time to react so that you can take or plan appropriate defensive action well before any actual danger materialises.

Road hazard perception test