Drive Carefully

     As a Doctor of Chiropractic at Accident and Injury Chiropractic, I see a lot of people who have been injured in a car wreck.  Although most of those I treat were injured by someone else's neglegence, it would appear that many who get injured could have avoided the accident by being a little more watchful and basically, careful.  Yes, many accidents are totally unavoidable but by being watchful and anticipating others just a bit, one can avoid many accidents.
     In my younger days I drove a motorcycle quite a bit to and from work and school, on some very busy and somewhat dangerous roads.  Driving a motorcycle is unique in that even a slight fender bender type of accident can be deadly.  On a motorcycle one must practice the most defensive of driving strategies.  At a red light, when it turns green, I would always hold off on going until I gave any other traffic one more look.  All too often a car would speed through the intersection a full second or two after I had the green to go.  Had I gone, even though I then had the right of way, I would certainly have been killed or severely injured.  The point being, if we drove our cars as if we were on motorcycles, many accidents would be avoided all together.
     I have heard many stories of people taking their right of way only to be hit by other vehicles which failed to yield that right of way.  Had they simply waited a bit or yielded themselves a bit, the entire accident would have been avoided.  I am reminded of the driver who slammed into a vehicle blocking a road to turn across traffic.  The driver who did the slamming had the right of way, true, but seeing the vehicle pulling out or even looking as if they might, the driver could possibly have avoided the collision by simply slowing a bit to see what that other vehicle was going to do before assuming the right of way.
     I'm not an attorney but I have heard it said that the law requires all drivers to maintain an adequate lookout for situations such as I have described here.  And that brings me to speed limits.  People just drive too fast.  A speed limit is not the speed one should actually drive, it is the maximum allowable speed IF it is safe to do so.  There are many places where the posted speed limit is just too fast for the street in question.  Drivers should think about that as they approach intersections.
      Then we come to rain and wet roads.  I was driving with my daughter a couple of nights ago in some pretty steady rain.   Visibility was not too bad but the rain was steady and at times heavy.  I was amazed at how fast traffic was going on both the streets and freeways.  Many were exceeding the speed limits and driving as if there was actually no change in traction or visibility as the rain continued to pour down.  I spent most of the night avoiding others in my efforts to get to where we were going.  Incedentally, we saw quite a few accidents.
     So, to make a long story short, if we would just drive more watchfully much as a person on a motorcycle should and most do, the number of accidents would be reduced significantly.  Assume the other guys are going to do what they shouldn't, assume they are talking on their cell phones or are being distracted in some form or fashion and many, many accidents can be avoided.  Drive like an old codger?  No.  Just drive safe.
      But if the unavoidable happens and an injury occurs, get to the doctor as soon as possible.