A final word on the Fred Flintstone school of driving safely (and possible antidote to North Carolina car accidents?)
This post closes our four-part series on how a “caveman driving” approach to road safety might substantially reduce or even eliminate many dangerous, typical North Carolina car accidents.
In our previous post, we explained:
• Why road safety engineers face a fundamental constraint – that is, we use caveman brains to navigate super highways, and that’s a problem;
• How engineers might be able to use this construct to think differently (and better) about safety and policy;
• Heuristics (rules of thumb) for moving policy in a “caveman driver” direction.
In this last part, we are going to get super practical and discuss possible ways that you, personally, can reduce your risk of North Carolina car accidents by honing your personal caveman driving skills.
One caveman driving-inspired approach is to improve your reaction time. Human beings are adaptable, if nothing else, and the more we adapt our habits, reactions, and thought processes to relevant situations, the better/safer/healthier our lives can be. In other words, we can train ourselves to be better drivers, but it’s going to take some effort. And to that end, here are some suggestions:
• Take drivers’ education refresher courses once every few years (instead of minimum requirements) so that you can really drill into your brain “best practices” for driving.
• Pay attention to when you do and do not drive well. Especially if you drive long distances (e.g. if you are an interstate trucker), keep a log of how you felt at different times along your journey. Obviously, wait until you stop to write this stuff down! Review this driving journal and make notes of your habits, so you can see when you are most alert and active and when your skills behind the wheels start to flag.
• Improve your diet, health, and sleep patterns so that you can have more energy and alertness in all activities – including driving.
• Pay attention to other limitations that you face as a caveman trapped in a super highway world. Since the many millennia since we stopped living as hunter-gatherers, human beings have adopted some strange behaviors, beliefs, and attitudes that fundamentally depart from the “caveman ideal.” Some theorists believe that the more we come in line with this caveman/Paleolithic ideal, the healthier, the safer, happier and better we will be.
On a more specific and practical note, if you or a loved one is facing a crisis caused by motor vehicle accident (e.g. a serious injury, chronic whiplash injury, property damage, etc.), a North Carolina car accident law firm can help you. A qualified attorney will help you figure out what you need to do to resolve the situation and get fair compensation.
More Web Resources:
Human reaction time
Improve reaction times
