Page 29 - 2021-2022 Commercial Drivers Manual

SECTION 2 : DRIVING SAFETY

services, e-mailing, instant messaging, a com- Be very careful when passing a driver who • Avoid gestures. Keep you hands on the wheel.
mand or request to access a World Wide Web seems to be distracted. The other driver may Avoid making any gestures that might anger
page, or engaging in any other form of electronic not be aware of your presence, and they may another driver, even seemingly harmless ex-
text retrieval or entry, for present or future com- drift in front of you. pressions of irritation like shaking your head.
munication. • Be a cautious and courteous driver. If another
Electronic device includes, but is not limited 2.10 – Aggressive Drivers/ driver seems eager to get in front of you, say,
to, a cellular telephone; personal digital assis- Road Rage “Be my guest.” This response will soon be-
tant; pager; computer; or any other device used come a habit and you won’t be as offended
to enter, write, send, receive, or read text. by other drivers’ actions.
Your CDL will be disqualified after two or 2.10.1 – What Is It?
more convictions of any state law on texting Aggressive driving and road rage is not a 2.10.3 – What You Should Do

while operating a CMV. Disqualifications is 60 new problem. However, in today’s world, where When Confronted by an
days for the second offense within 3 years and heavy and slow-moving traffic and tight sched- Aggressive Driver
120 days for three or more offenses within 3 ules are the norm, more and more drivers are
years. In addition, the first and each subsequent taking out their anger and frustration in their • First and foremost, make every attempt to
violation of such a prohibition are subject to vehicles. get out of their way.
civil penalties imposed on such drivers, in an Crowded roads leave little room for error, • Put your pride in the back seat. Do not chal-

amount up to $2,750. No motor carrier shall leading to suspicion and hostility among driv- lenge them by speeding up or attempting to
allow or require its drivers to engage in texting ers and encouraging them to take personally hold-your-own in your travel lane.
while driving. There is an emergency exception the mistakes of other drivers.
that allows you to text if necessary to commu- Aggressive driving is the act of operating a • Avoid eye contact.
nicate with law enforcement officials or other motor vehicle in a selfish, bold, or pushy manner, • Ignore gestures and refuse to react to them.

emergency services. without regard for the rights or safety of others.
Evidence shows that the odds of being in- Road rage is operating a motor vehicle with • Report aggressive drivers to the appropriate
volved in a safety-critical event (e.g., crash, the intent of doing harm to others or physically authorities by providing a vehicle descrip-
near-crash, unintentional lane deviation) is 23.2 assaulting a driver or their vehicle. tion, license number, location and, if possible,
times greater for CMV drivers who engage in direction of travel.
textng while driving that for those who do not. 2.10.2 – Don’t Be an • If you have a cell phone, and can do it safely,

Sending or receiving text takes your eyes from Aggressive Driver call the police.
the road for an average of 4.6 seconds. At 55
mph, you would travel 371 feet, or the length How you feel before you even start your ve- • If an aggressive driver is involved in a crash
of an entire football field - without looking at hicle has a lot to do with how stress will affect farther down the road, stop a safe distance
the roadway. you while driving. from the crash scene, wait for the police to
arrive, and report the driving behavior that
• Reduce your stress before and while you

2.9.4 – Watch Out for Other you witnessed.
Distracted Drivers drive. Listen to “easy listening” music.
• Give the drive your full attention. Don’t allow
You need to be able to recognize other drivers 2.11 – Driving at Night
who are engaged in any form of driving distrac- yourself to become distracted by talking on
tion. Not recognizing other distracted drivers your cell phone, eating, etc. 2.11.1 – It’s More Dangerous

can prevent you from perceiving or reacting • Be realistic about your travel time. Expect
correctly in time to prevent a crash. Watch for: delays because of traffic, construction, or bad You are at greater risk when you drive at
weather and make allowances. night. Drivers can’t see hazards as quickly as
• Vehicles that may drift over the lane divider in daylight, so they have less time to respond.
lines or within their own lane. • If you’re going to be later than you expected Drivers caught by surprise are less able to avoid
– deal with it. Take a deep breath and accept
• Vehicles traveling at inconsistent speeds. a crash.
the delay. The problems of night driving involve the
• Drivers who are preoccupied with maps, • Give other drivers the benefit of the doubt. driver, the roadway, and the vehicle.
food, cigarettes, cell phones, or other objects.
Try to imagine why he or she is driving that
• Drivers who appear to be involved in con- way. Whatever their reason, it has nothing 2.11.2 – Driver Factors
versations with their passengers. to do with you.
Vision. People can’t see as sharply at night or

Give a distracted driver plenty of room and • Slow down and keep your following distance in dim light. Also, their eyes need time to adjust
maintain your safe following distance. reasonable. to seeing in dim light. Most people have noticed
this when walking into a dark movie theater.
• Don’t drive slowly in the left lane of traffic.
Good vision is critical for safe driving. Your
control of the brake, accelerator, and steering
TEST YOUR KNOWLEDGE wheel is based on what you see. If you cannot
see clearly, you will have trouble identifying
Subsections 2.9 and 2.10 traffic and roadway conditions, spotting po-
tential trouble or responding to problems in a
• What are some tips to follow so you won’t • What is the difference between timely manner.
become a distracted driver? aggressive driving and road rage? Because seeing well is so critical to safe
driving, you should have your eyes checked
• How do you use in-vehicle • What should you do when confronted regularly by an eye specialist. You may never
communications equipment cautiously? with an aggressive driver? know you have poor vision unless your eyes
• How do you recognize a distracted • What are some things you can do to are tested. If you need to wear glasses or contact
driver? reduce your stress before and while you lenses for driving, remember to.
drive? Always wear them when driving, even if
driving short distances. If your driver license
These questions may be on the test. If you can’t answer them all, re-read subsections 2.9 says corrective lenses are required, it is illegal to
and 2.10. move a vehicle without using corrective lenses.
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