ICBC.com

Handling your vehicle

What's a safe following distance?

The best guideline for keeping a safe distance behind a vehicle in front of you is the 2-second rule. Here's how to apply it:

Observe the vehicle in front of you as it passes a fixed point along the road, such as a signpost, a tree, or a painted line.
Immediately start counting: "one-thousand-one, one-thousand-two," and so on.
If you pass the fixed point before completing "one-thousand-two," you are following too closely.

Apply this general rule during good driving conditions, when visibility is clear and pavement dry.

If your visibility or traction is poor due to fog, rain or snow, increase the counting time (and therefore following distance) to 3 or even 4 seconds. Do this when driving at higher speeds on the highway too.

Changing lanes

When preparing to change lanes, mirror check to see if there's a safe gap in traffic.
Turn on your turn signal.
Shoulder check before changing lanes. This is important. However, you shouldn't turn your head so far around that you can't see traffic ahead with your peripheral vision. Instead, think of it as a "shoulder peek."
Make sure you have enough space then steer steadily into the other lane, looking ahead in the direction you want to go. Match your speed with the vehicle ahead of you and keep a 2-second distance from it. Straighten and centre your wheels in the lane and make sure your turn signal is off.

Yielding the right-of-way

If two or more vehicles arrive at the same location at the same time, someone has to go first. We say that person has the right-of-way. Right-of-way is not something to be taken, it is something to be given.

The rules of right-of-way are simple. When you arrive at a four-way stop at the same time as another driver, yield to the car on your right.

Using your signals

Any time you slow down or change direction, you must give advance notice to the drivers around you. Signal when preparing to: change lanes, stop, park or move to or away from the side of the road.

Signal well in advance to give others plenty of warning.

Activating your car�s signals or lights is appropriate for most situations. In some cases, hand signals are better. For example, when you are pulling out from a line of parked vehicles your car�s turn signals might be hard to see.