Why is a European automobile service shop talking about sharing the road with semi-trucks on a holiday weekend? Because European automobiles can be much smaller than domestic makes and models, which makes them harder for the truck drivers to see. East Coast EuroWerks wants you to have a wonderful Thanksgiving weekend, not get into an automobile accident. If you keep the following in mind, you’ll find yourself safer on the highways and getting to and from your Thanksgiving celebration in no time.
Times When Truck Drivers Cannot See You
Take into account how much higher truck drivers sit and the load they’re hauling behind them. When you consider this, you realize how hard it is for them to see you. If you’re tucked in tight behind a big rig, the driver cannot see you at all. You’re in his or her blind spot. Semi-trucks have blind spots directly behind them, directly in front of them, and on each side adjacent to their side mirrors. Stay back and make sure the driver can see you at all times. If you cannot see the driver, the driver cannot see you.
Times When Truck Drivers Cannot React in Time
Even if the driver can see you, he or she cannot react like you can. You’re driving a much smaller automobile that can stop on a dime, swerve quickly, and speed up the minute you press down on the accelerator. Your car weighs about 5,000 pounds; the semi weighs about 80,000 pounds if it’s carrying a full load. As such, the driver cannot react the way you can. For example, it takes the length of two football fields for a fully-loaded semi-truck to stop, i.e. don’t cut one off or drive erratically around it.
Things You Can Do to Keep You and Your Family Safe
The roads, highways, and byways on Thanksgiving weekend tend to be the busiest of the year, and this includes plenty of big rigs working over the holiday weekend. Alongside respecting the truck drivers and sharing the road with them, sleep well the night before your drive and leave extra early to give you plenty of time to get there. This prevents you from driving when you’re sleepy and the need to rush, i.e. drive too close or too fast around the big rigs. Don’t drive drunk or distracted, either.
Keep your family safe by stopping by East Coast EuroWerks in Wilmington, NC, for an automotive checkup before your trip, as well. We’ll make sure you won’t have any problems with your European automobile while traveling over Thanksgiving weekend.