No Hurry

Part of adapting is to never hurry. If you are in a hurry you have a fixed goal. A fixed goal means you cant adapt as well. The attitude of hurrying contributes more to accidents than speeding. More accidents involve right of way and failing to give way than involve speeding. I say forget speed, but never hurry.

The problem with hurrying

Hurrying is never worth it, as it increases every other accident cause

When you hurry, your attitude is GO! GO! GO! Hurrying makes you not wear gear (reduces readiness), not respect weather conditions, and ignore road situations. Don't be misled because hurrying sometimes works. It always increases your accident probability, ie your risk. You can hurry 99 times and be OK, but one day, you may be slowed down for life. Hurrying is never worth it, as it increases every other accident cause. When two hurriers meet on the road, it is usually in accident alley.

Never hurry situations

The never hurry rule applies especially in two situations:

  • Intersections
  • Changing lanes

Both these situations involve cross-flows.

This one decision can reduce your accident chances enormously

Decide right now to NEVER EVER HURRY at intersections or when changing lanes. This one decision can reduce your accident chances enormously. When you hurry, you put yourself above the world. You have your plan, which makes you hurry, but Life also has its Plan. Life's Plan will always take precedence over your plan. Trust me on this. Hurrying causes accidents, as it disconnects you from the world. So tune into the world, not yourself. Never hurry, unless you wish to hurry to disaster

Intersections

An intersection is a high risk traffic cross-flow

Most accidents occur at intersections, so whatever your initial speed, always slow down as you pass through the intersection. Never accelerate into an intersection, e.g. to beat a red light. I can't stress this enough. If the light turns red, accept it and stop - that's life. You can't win them all (except in your dreams). At intersections the rule is: stop accelerating, drop a gear and cover the brake. Be ready to stop, because an intersection is a high risk traffic cross-flow.

Changing lanes

Highways solve the problem of intersections. However they create another problem just as bad - that of changing lanes. Many highway accidents occur when people change lanes. So the rule is: never be in a hurry to change lanes. A sudden lane change is an invitation to an accident party. If you don't have time to change lanes, then don't . Just stay in the lane where you are, and then you will live well and prosper.

Question: Sometimes I find I am in the wrong lane for my highway turn-off,. If I miss it, it means another 15 minutes to turn around further on. However to get it, I would have to cut across two lanes in busy traffic. What should I do?
Answer: Miss it and stay alive. While you are going back around, you can remind yourself to get in the lane in advance, so it is not time wasted.