Driving in New Jersey can be a crowded affair. You may feel like you spend your days bumper to bumper with other vehicles.
The roads certainly are not quiet here, but that does not mean you cannot create some space for yourself when driving. Doing so reduces the risk you have a collision. Here is why:
Space buys you time to think and react to the actions of other road users and hazards that appear in your path. Here is what could happen if you are too close to another vehicle:
Too close behind
You are sitting on someone’s taillight and are both traveling at speed. Suddenly they hit their brakes. The closer you are to them, the less time you have to notice their brake light and react.
Too close alongside
You are hugging the lane lines as you cross the bridge across the river when a gust of wind catches the high-sided truck alongside you. If you are too close, you risk being hit as the trailer swerves. If you had left more of a gap by being in the center of your lane or staying one lane over, you would have been safe.
Too close in front
As you pass a vehicle, a motorcycle comes faster than you expect in the opposite direction. You pull into the inadequate gap between the vehicle you are passing and the one in front of it, only to find yourself shunted from behind because the driver was looking at their phone and did not notice you.
You cannot always predict what will happen around you. If a crash happens, seek legal help to understand if you can claim compensation.