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How to Eliminate the Dreaded “Blind Spot”

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Re: How to Eliminate the Dreaded “Blind Spot”

#251
post #185

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It is not feasible to be always monitoring the mirrors; that takes attention from what is in front of you. You in fact must not be constantly monitoring the mirrors, but only glancing from time to time.

I would say you are driving with extremely low situational awareness if you are not always aware of cars approaching and overtaking you from behind.

Or you are driving with perfectly normal situational awareness, multiplied by enough hours, and sometimes you hit the low end of the bell curve.

Checking is far more reliable.

Re: How to Eliminate the Dreaded “Blind Spot”

#253
post #25

There are smaller things (bicycles, motorcycles, pedestrians) that can sneak into the gap between the side and rearview mirror views here. And colliding with one of those is much more likely to cause serious injury or death than colliding with a car. It's a much better idea to make sure your side and rear mirrors have complete coverage (i.e. no gaps) at the back, and actually turning your head to check the blind spot…

Agree that extra caution is needed for pedestrians and bicycles. Having said that, I never understood why bicycles aren't required to ride on the sidewalks in areas that have them. The threat posed by a car to a bike is much greater than the threat posed by a bike to a pedestrian, therefore, to maximize safety bikes should be on the sidewalk. As far as motorcycles are concerned - I think they're a bad idea in general…

Bicycles don't ride on sidewalks because you want to maximize their visibility. Most deadly accidents between bikes and cars happen at intersections where bikes are getting right-hooked by drivers who forget to check their blind spot. Drivers don't expect objects traveling at 30km/h on the sidewalk, so they're even less likely to look. Sharing the road between bikes and cars is much safer. There would be almost no problem if cars respected safe overtaking distances and switched lanes to overtake bikes.

Re: How to Eliminate the Dreaded “Blind Spot”

#254
post #122

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Your could make the same arguments for bringing back manual chokes. I think it's better to reduce the driver's workload so they can keep both hands on the wheel and devote more attention to what's happening outside.

> so they can keep both hands on the wheel and devote more attention to what's happening outside. That was my point though. When driving a manual, your hands are either A) on the wheel, or B) one on wheel, other shifting gears. You can't really do much else. Maybe drink coffee if you're sitting in the same gear over distance, but in suburban traffic with stop lights and signs and turns, you can't afford to do much mo…

At the times that an automatic most easily lets your attention wander, driving at a consistent speed, a manual does no more to keep you engaged.

It keeps you more focused on the car at lights and turns, but that might be a bad thing. I want to be focused on the cross traffic, not my engine.

Re: How to Eliminate the Dreaded “Blind Spot”

#255
Additional advice: 1. Buy additional spherical mirrors. I bought them for sole reason to see blind spot and they are great. There are oval ones like https://www.amazon.com/Blind-Spot-Mirror-Convex-Mirrors-GUAR... but I actually found additional small spherical mirrors and added them. They mount on existing mirror.

2. Change lanes slowly so if I didn't notice someone, he can dodge or horn me.

Those blind spot indicator ligts surely help on newer cars, but I don't have them. I know that it is possible to buy those too.

Re: How to Eliminate the Dreaded “Blind Spot”

#256

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Not to be rude, but yeah, what else would they mean? Is your peripheral good at picking up anything on the planet since it's always spinning? Everything is always moving relative to something else.

It's important to be explicitly clear in this case because objects traveling next to you in the road, which would be visible only in your peripheral vision, may be effectively stationary reflective to you. So you can't rely on your peripheral vision to notice them.

Ah yeah, got it.

Re: How to Eliminate the Dreaded “Blind Spot”

#257
post #25

There are smaller things (bicycles, motorcycles, pedestrians) that can sneak into the gap between the side and rearview mirror views here. And colliding with one of those is much more likely to cause serious injury or death than colliding with a car. It's a much better idea to make sure your side and rear mirrors have complete coverage (i.e. no gaps) at the back, and actually turning your head to check the blind spot…

There is an even better way, used in Latin America, Africa (and I suspect other developing countries). I've driven about 100,000 miles through 46 countries on those continents, I've had a lot of practice at what I call "Make it up driving"

The rule is, who cares if it's behind you. Do whatever the hell you want, because people behind you can see you and they will get out of your way. You can't easily see them, so don't concern yourself with them.

This does rely on ALL drivers being much more attentive than the average first-world driver.

If you want to be polite, or you're doing something really unexpected like stopping in the driving lane to let people off or reversing through traffic, you can just tap your horn a couple of times to say "Hey everyone, look at me", and everything will just flow around you.

It's amazing how well this works, even in the kind of insane free-flowing traffic most Westerners would utterly lose their minds in. I enjoy it much more because it makes driving way less boring, and you get to interact with all the other drivers too. I love too that when you come to a stop sign there is no need to stop - if all the other cars in your direction are already going you just go, and the drivers at right angles to you will compensate and watch and then their direction will go and flow sometime later. Red lights - no need to stop if there is no opposing traffic, etc. etc.

I don't have statistics, though in my almost 5 years of driving in these conditions I have never once seen a fender bender, and traffic really moves way better through intersections than in developed countries where people follow the stupid rules. (Highway driving is a different story in terms of crashes and deaths in developing countries)

Re: How to Eliminate the Dreaded “Blind Spot”

#258
post #18
post #11

There's an even simpler, more effective way of checking blind spots: Actually turning ones head and looking over the shoulder. The "blind spot" doesn't exist when drivers exercise proper caution and responsible driving behavior. Of course, expecting this of drivers is unrealistically utopian. Nevertheless, a "blind spot" is just another excuse for unsafe drivers.

Turning your head means not looking forward. You might think it is safe to operate a multi-ton death machine at death speeds while closing your eyes or looking backwards or whatever you're doing except looking forward. But it is not. Learn to use mirrors, so your peripheral vision remains on the most important thing: where you are going. "Turning your head" is an unsafe way to avoid having properly set mirrors. With…

Not turning your head means not seeing the bike next to you.

Re: How to Eliminate the Dreaded “Blind Spot”

#259

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Agree that extra caution is needed for pedestrians and bicycles. Having said that, I never understood why bicycles aren't required to ride on the sidewalks in areas that have them. The threat posed by a car to a bike is much greater than the threat posed by a bike to a pedestrian, therefore, to maximize safety bikes should be on the sidewalk. As far as motorcycles are concerned - I think they're a bad idea in general…

Bicycles don't ride on sidewalks because you want to maximize their visibility. Most deadly accidents between bikes and cars happen at intersections where bikes are getting right-hooked by drivers who forget to check their blind spot. Drivers don't expect objects traveling at 30km/h on the sidewalk, so they're even less likely to look. Sharing the road between bikes and cars is much safer. There would be almost no pr…

Drivers don't expect objects traveling at 30km/h on the sidewalk, but that doesn't matter. Drivers are supposed to be on the roads. I suppose the idea is that the bike would just zip across the intersection at that speed? The people preferring bikes on sidewalks are thinking of non-athlete bike riders. They never go that fast. At intersections, they dismount and walk. These bike users are far more compatible with pedestrians than they are with cars.

Re: How to Eliminate the Dreaded “Blind Spot”

#260

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I advocate turning your head and looking, but it’s not safe to take your eyes off the car ahead of you in Seattle traffic many times. When traffic is both fast and heavy and with the potential to completely stop fast enough to engage abs, randomly, every few miles, anything you can do to shorten the quick look the better. I have done this with my mirrors for a year or so and it’s been a big help. I still dart a glanc…

This description suggests that it's not safe to change lanes in such traffic.

This is true. Accidents everyday.
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