Steer Clear of Dangerous Obstacles in the Road

Distractions can take your attention off the road and cause you to miss debris until it’s too late. “Some of these are obvious, like using a cell phone, eating a sandwich or doing your makeup, but there are other dangerous distractions, like talking to a passenger in your vehicle or even getting lost in your thoughts while driving,” says Joe Young, a spokesman for the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety. “It’s really important to focus on the road.”

Make it a habit to keep an eye out for risky situations at all times. This can help you spot a potential hazard such as an unsecured load, or a loose panel on another vehicle, before it becomes road debris. “If you do see a risky situation, like a truck ahead of you with a trailer full of furniture, back way off,” Van Tassel says.

Driving safety experts call this leaving a “donut of space” around you. It gives you room to move over, and the confidence that it’s safe to do so, if you spot an object on the road. “It’s really hard to hit something if you have space around you,” Van Tassel says.

Use a driving technique known as scanning to help prevent tunnel vision on the road and spot hazards. Look at least a quarter mile ahead of you, briefly look to the left and right of the roadway, and look at your rear and side mirrors every five to eight seconds. Watch for brake lights or vehicles making sudden lane changes, Van Tassel says: “Vehicles around you give all sorts of fantastic clues to trouble ahead.”

If the vehicle in front of you suddenly brakes for road debris, you’ll need space to brake to avoid a crash. The National Safety Council recommends giving yourself three seconds of distance from the vehicle in front of you, plus one extra second for every less-than-ideal condition. For example, if you’re stressed about work and it’s raining lightly, allow five seconds of following distance. It takes time to notice a hazard, react and stop. “From 60 mph to zero, you’re looking at 120 to 150 feet of braking distance,” Young says. “That’s significant — it’s about half the length of a football field.”

Follow the routine maintenance schedule recommended for your vehicle, and do regular oil changes and tire checks. Sign up with NHTSA to get alerts of early warning reports that vehicle and equipment manufacturers must submit for potential problems with certain vehicles. And finally, get rattling sounds or other odd noises checked out as they could signal a loose panel or part on your vehicle — and these are one of the main sources of road debris.