Do You Remember these Important Traffic Laws?

The inevitability of failure is something that we each will have to accept in life. When studying for a standardized test, it is important to brush up on every principle that will be covered but to mentally prepare for the possibility that you won’t get a perfect score. While possible, it is simply unlikely. 

Other tests actively try to get you to miss questions in order to adjust in real-time and provide you with puzzles that are better suited to your skill level and what you know — tests like the GMAT, the entrance exam for most Masters-level business programs. 

Drivers do not get the luxury of accepting a measure of imperfection while still anticipating good results. Each broken law could very likely lead to a citation or worse.

Remembering the Forgotten

When it comes to accidents and how they occur, there are many reasons why a person may suddenly find themselves needing to make an unanticipated visit to our South Ogden car repair center. Most of these fall into a few subcategories:

• Distracted driving — cell phones, intoxication, road rage.
• Interference by nature — bright sun, heavy snowfall, fog, night driving.
• Vehicle neglect — breakdowns, fluid loss.
• Lapse in judgment — forgotten traffic laws, mistimed actions. 

Naturally, we’d hope that every driver would put down the phone while they drive and focus on the road. And we also encourage drivers to come to Master Muffler as often as is necessary in order to get their car tuned up properly (which in many ways will help with interferences caused by nature). These are things that, by working on them, we limit how often they happen.

The last category, however, is one that can be a little harder to improve. After all, how can we remember things we’ve forgotten, especially if we don’t know we have? Let’s take a look at a few of the most commonly overlooked traffic laws that have been the cause of a number of unhappy car repairs.

Tailgating

We’ve all been in that place: stuck behind a particularly slow driver who doesn’t seem to have a care in the world. Murphy’s Law seems to ensure that we are always behind this person whenever we have somewhere to be in a hurry or when we’re already anxious about something.

As much as we enjoy sending that driver a message by creeping up on his rear bumper, it’s actually unlawful to do so. The rule of thumb is to always keep a “reasonable and prudent” distance from other drivers. When we find ourselves in situations like this, there are a few tips that could help us deescalate the tension:

• Give yourself at least three seconds of time to react to changes in the traffic in front of you.
• Stay 3 – 5 car lengths away from the vehicle directly ahead of you.
• Take deep breaths and relax your grip on the steering wheel.

Passing Lane Etiquette

There is a diverse range of feelings regarding the “fast lane.” Some take it for just another lane of traffic, one that can be driven at any and all times; others don’t allow themselves to drive in it at all, using it only for passing other cars.

Many visitors to our South Ogden car repair shop have reported encountering trouble in this lane thanks to the different ways the lane is used and regulated state-by-state. In Utah, the law is that you must make way for approaching cars in the left lane by merging right and letting them pass, regardless of how fast you, yourself, are going. Research shows:

• Having a free left lane improves the flow of traffic.
• Slow drivers in the passing lane lead to slammed breaks by faster drivers, which cause accidents.
• Emergency vehicles can use this lane to attend to incidents better.

The Four-Way Stop

As potentially confusing as this law can be, most people forget the rules surrounding a four-way stop due to impatience. Eventually, one might forget the actual order of operations if they constantly think they have the right of way. The rules are simple:

• The car that stopped first has the right of way, then the next person who stopped, and so on.
• If multiple cars get there at the same time, the flow of traffic proceeds clockwise.

Plenty of drivers have made trips to Master Muffler because of misreading the flow at a four-way stop. Don’t be one of them!

Cell Phones

Over the years, cell phones have become the number one culprit of unnecessary accidents and fatalities. Truly, if driving was to have an archnemesis, it would be smartphones. As such, it’s important to remind ourselves what the law in Utah actually states:

• While driving, all uses of the phone are prohibited except hands-free calls and GPS navigation.
• Talking with one hand on the phone while driving is a secondary offense.
• All forms of texting behind the wheel are illegal unless the car is in Park and it is safe to do so.

No one wants to deal with the fallout from an accident on the road. However, in the event that you need to, our South Ogden car repair specialists are more than ready to help. Drop in today and we will get you sorted out quickly and efficiently.