One of the main fears of any motorist is the fear of driving at night. Statistics show that 31% of drivers in the UK are afraid to drive at night. To be fair, it is worth noting that this fear is quite reasonable, although it is often hypertrophied. However, the main question is why it happens and how to cope with it. This is what we will talk about today.
Let’s start at the beginning: why is driving in the dark a fear?
The main cause of fear is the darkness. Even people who in normal life have a normal attitude to the darkness, getting behind the wheel, it is, to put it mildly, afraid. This is logical, because in such conditions visibility is sharply reduced. Of course, in a big city with sufficient lighting from street lamps, shop windows and houses it is easier to cope with this fear. However, not all roads are well lit. Accordingly, you can only rely on your eyesight and headlights. Speaking of the latter: thanks to headlights you can see only a strip of 50-100 metres in length and 15 metres in width. Needless to say, this is very little? In addition, we do not take into account the landscape and weather conditions, which can also significantly complicate the situation.
How to prepare for driving at night?
There are some simple tips to help you prepare for driving at night and become more confident behind the wheel at this time.
- Firstly, make sure your car is in good technical condition. Be sure to check the lighting equipment, paying particular attention to the front lights. After all, if they are faulty or the front headlight light is dim you will lose precious metres of visibility on the road. In addition, you may face a fine for driving with front headlights that are not fully operational.
In addition to the lighting equipment, you should also check that the windows and mirrors are in good working order and clean and the general condition of the car, as not only you but also your car should react quickly during an emergency.
- There are certain rules of driving at night that must not be broken. It is a question of conscious and constant observance of speed limits and reducing speed on corners and unknown sections of the road. In addition, you should be as attentive as possible and use the full potential of mirrors to control the situation around you. And lastly, do not look at the headlights of oncoming cars, as it will blind you. Vision will be fully restored only after 30 seconds. And this is quite enough to get into an emergency situation.
- The last tip is about what you should do and take with you when travelling at night. First of all, be sure to rest and get a good night’s sleep. This is the key to your attentiveness on the road. It will not be superfluous to drink coffee before the trip and take an energy drink with you. If you are travelling with passengers at a time when you will feel tired – ask them to talk to you. If you have even minimal problems with your eyesight, but you do not wear glasses on a regular basis – you should take them on the road, because at night your eyesight tends to deteriorate.
- If you follow all these tips, your journey in the dark will be much more comfortable and safe. And yet, it is worth understanding that our psyche likes to dorisovat real danger a lot of new and creepy outlines. Therefore, it is still worthwhile to get over yourself and try. It is at this point that you will realise that everything is not as scary as it seemed.
