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Top 15 Tips for Safe Overtaking

Overtaking, also known as ‘passing’, is the act of changing lanes or driving around a relatively slower vehicle to get ahead of it. Though it is a pretty simple act, it is also a very dangerous one and has resulted in several road accidents.

Overtaking in a car demands a clear vision of the road ahead, and knowledge and understanding of other vehicles that might be affected – approaching vehicles from the front, trailing vehicles and the ones surrounding the vehicle to overtake. It requires correct perception and able application of mind over machine. It also involves judgment of speed and distance along with the judicious use of various car accessories like the rearview and side mirrors, transmission, steering wheel, and the braking system.

bullet Following are the Top 15 tips for overtaking a    vehicle safely:

  1. Overtaking should always be done from the right side for right hand wheel drive. If the vehicle in front flashes the signal for right turn, you can overtake from the left.
  2. Before embarking on the manoeuvre, evaluate the distance and speed of the car in front.
  3. Also evaluate the hazards that could exist and prove to be threatening.
  4. Never overtake in blind areas such as bends in roads, corners, near junctions, crossroads, and intersections. In such areas, the driver of the vehicle ahead is not able to have a clear vision of what is behind and passing which may eventually result in an accident.
  5. Place the car on the lowest possible gear depending on the speed of your car. This does not mean that if you are already driving at a speed of 80 km/h, you will have to lower down to the 1st gear. Reduce gears to slow down your car for safe overtaking.
  6. While overtaking, make sure that you maintain a safe distance with the vehicle ahead. This will help you drive your car in flow with the moving traffic.
  7. Fast acceleration and unnecessary speeding is dangerous just before overtaking. If in case you do accelerate, the distance required for safe overtaking reduces rapidly and could result in an accident.
  8. You can either flash your car’s headlight or blow the horn to draw attention to your intention to overtake. This will help the drivers ahead and behind you know that you are attempting to overtake.
  9. Try and make eye contact with the driver of the car you are passing. This ensures that the driver of the vehicle ahead has seen you and is sure that you are going past.
  10. The vehicle behind you may also overtake at the same time that you are. Stay alert to this and be cautious. Give clear indications of your plan to driver of the vehicle behind you.
  11. After overtaking, move to the centre of the road and then accelerate as fast as you can to maintain the speed and distance differential.
  12. Constantly keep an eye on passing vehicles and try to merge with the flowing traffic rather than spacing yourself away from it.
  13. Overtaking on crowded and busy city roads is dangerous due to numerous signals that are exchanged by drivers. Traffic congestion and different sized vehicles add to the problem. In such cases, avoid overtaking as far as possible and enjoy a slow and safe drive.
  14. When being overtaken yourself and in case there are approaching vehicles, be sure to slow down a little to let the other driver pass by safely.
  15. Safe overtaking methods will prevent a number of road accidents which are not uncommon on Indian roads.
Apart from these overtaking tips, here are additional tips for safe overtaking under different driving conditions:

bullet Overtaking at Night

Night driving is considered to be most hazardous due to low visibility and dip in concentration of the driver. Here are some of the best tips for overtaking safely on night drives:
  1. When you approach a car in front, turn your car’s headlight to low beam so as to not flash your beam into his mirrors.
  2. Flash your car’s headlight to warn the driver ahead of you of your intention to overtake.
  3. Study the blind spots well before proceeding.
  4. While overtaking, turn your car’s headlight to high beam to ensure better visibility of the road ahead.
  5. After overtaking, use the side indicator to inform other drivers that you are merging back to the original lane.

bullet Overtaking on Highways

Although driving on Indian highways comparatively easier than on city roads, there are a few measures that need to be taken while overtaking. Here are a few tips for overtaking safely on Indian highways:
  1. Never overtake in blind spot areas such as sharp curves or bends in the route.
  2. Never overtake from the left side.
  3. Maintain a safe distance - at least twice the length of the vehicle that you are about to pass.
  4. If you find the way ahead to be clear, flash the headlights of your car and only then overtake.
  5. Be extra cautious as approaching vehicles will be at high speeds.

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