{"id":2062,"date":"2016-03-14T18:48:21","date_gmt":"2016-03-14T18:48:21","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blog.leithcars.com\/?p=2062"},"modified":"2016-03-14T18:48:21","modified_gmt":"2016-03-14T18:48:21","slug":"keeping-family-safe-highway-5-quick-tips","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/blog.leithcars.com\/?p=2062","title":{"rendered":"Keeping Your Family Safe on the Highway \u2013 5 Quick Tips"},"content":{"rendered":"

By now, you\u2019ve probably heard about the 100-car pileup on I-40 near Statesville<\/a>, and the 21 people who were injured as a result. WRAL<\/a> and other sources<\/a> report that the accidents were caused by low visibility from Sunday night\u2019s rainstorms, wet roads, and possibly rubbernecking. Thankfully, no one was killed.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s terrifying to see something like this happen so close to home. Many of us take I-40 every day, and have friends and family who do the same. For that reason, we want to do everything in our power to keep them safe, and sharing information is the best way we know how.<\/p>\n

1. Monitor your following distance<\/strong><\/h3>\n

Many accidents \u2013 including Sunday\u2019s pile up \u2013 are caused by drivers following too closely. A good way to avoid this is to employ the two-second rule. The two-second rule states that a driver should be at least two seconds behind the car in front of them. So, when the car you\u2019re following passes an object (tree, light pole, etc.), start counting. If you reach the object before you reach \u201ctwo-Mississippi,\u201d you\u2019re following too close.<\/p>\n

2. Watch your speed<\/strong><\/h3>\n

Believe it or not, they don\u2019t set the speed limits by pulling numbers out of a hat. Everything from population of the area, road design, and geographic location are used to determine a safe speed limit, so don\u2019t ignore it. We\u2019re not saying you have to follow it exactly, but don\u2019t over-do it. Plenty of research<\/a> shows the correlation between higher speeds and more accidents.<\/p>\n

3. Respect Mother Nature<\/strong><\/h3>\n

When the weather changes, so should your driving habits. Rain, snow, and ice all affect your stopping distance, and an active storm can severely reduce your visibility. If you\u2019re on the road and a big storm rolls in, we say pull over and wait it out – especially at night. No destination or appointment is more important than your life.<\/p>\n

4. Maintain your vehicle<\/strong><\/h3>\n

You wouldn\u2019t go for a run in flip-flops, would you? So, why drive on the road with bald tires? Having the proper equipment is essential to safety, whether you\u2019re jogging a mile or driving to work. Keep your car maintained and it will keep you safe.<\/p>\n

5. Avoid distractions<\/strong><\/h3>\n

Put down the cellphone. Please. It\u2019s not going anywhere \u2013 we promise all the texts, snapchats, Facebook updates, and tweets will be there when you\u2019re done! Sorry to be pedantic, but we\u2019ll try anything to stop you. Just think, if you\u2019re traveling down the road at 70mph, you\u2019re moving at 105 feet per second. At this speed, you cover the entire length of a football field in just 3.4 seconds. Think about that next time you\u2019re tempted to send a text while driving.<\/p>\n

Do your part<\/strong><\/h3>\n

Hold your family and friends accountable. If you see them driving recklessly, tell them how it makes you feel. At Leith, we want nothing but a long and happy future for all our families, and keeping each other safe is the first step.<\/p>\n

For more information on defensive driving, feel free to check out www.safetync.org<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

By now, you\u2019ve probably heard about the 100-car pileup on I-40 near Statesville, and the 21 people who were injured as a result. WRAL and other sources report that the accidents were caused by low visibility from Sunday night\u2019s rainstorms, wet roads, and possibly rubbernecking. Thankfully, no one was killed. It\u2019s terrifying to see something […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[23],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2062","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/blog.leithcars.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2062","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/blog.leithcars.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/blog.leithcars.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/blog.leithcars.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/blog.leithcars.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=2062"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"http:\/\/blog.leithcars.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2062\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/blog.leithcars.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=2062"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/blog.leithcars.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=2062"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/blog.leithcars.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=2062"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}