Driving Safely - The Five I's that Cause Problems by E. Dennis Brod, Esquire
The Five “I’s” that cause problems for motorists are: 1) immaturity 2) irresponsibility 3) incompetency, 4) inattention and 5) impatience,.
We can be guilty of one or more of these “I’s”, but most often we and the rest of the population are the victims. As to each one, let us make a few observations.
Immaturity. Common attributes of youth are great aids to motorists---good vision, good hearing, good reflexes, stamina and general alertness. But, youth often thinks of itself as indestructible. Feelings of invulnerability lead to forgetting caution and taking chances. Speeding, imprudent passing, failing to modify speed in bad weather or road conditions are some of the dangers. Having personal, emotional reactions to other drivers are others. Racing, showing off and acts of revenge can lead to disasters. Nor is immaturity only a problem for the young. An old aphorism teaches us that “you are only young once, but you can be immature forever” so at any age, act maturely behind the wheel.
Irresponsibility. We should not have to be reminded that consuming alcohol or drugs, even some prescription medicines, combined with driving can be deadly. Fully fifty per cent of all vehicular fatalities in the United States involve alcohol. Driving while fatigued is another danger as is failing to use and require the use of seat belts. Responsible driving extends to influence over others as well, so see to it that no one drives while under the influence of any substance or set of conditions that can impair abilities.
Incompetency. A certain amount of intelligence is needed to drive effectively and safely. Unfortunately, many drivers are seriously deficient in this area. There is no substitute for common sense. Our challenge is to recognize this fact and be aware of the consequences. Examples are cars pulling out of parking lots or entering the flow of traffic without looking, parking in hazardous places, neglecting to use turn signals, etc. Other forms of incompetency are physical, such as bad vision or hearing, lack of depth perception, inability to judge the speed of an oncoming car before making a cross lane left hand turn, slow reflexes and so on. Some of these can be corrected by wearing proper eyeglasses, using a hearing aid, etc. However, unless the authorities act to protect us, we have little power to prevent mishaps from incompetent drivers. Again, we need to be vigilant in anticipating mishaps before they occur.
Inattention. Talking on the telephone, sending text messages, inserting CD’s putting on make-up, eating, drinking and a variety of other activities should not be combined with the full time task of driving. Our complex society makes this difficult, but some judgment must be exercised. If cellular telephone calls have to be made, at least use a hands-free method if you are unable to stop your vehicle in a safe place to talk. Once again, common sense dictates what is reasonable.
Impatience. We all want to get there on time, but running through a red light, failing to stop for a stop sign or driving too fast for conditions are not the answer. Remember, it is better to arrive late than not at all. If you want to be on time, leave earlier.
In summary, in some cases we can only react to what others do while driving so we have to anticipate cautiously. As to what we do ourselves, we have choices as to how we behave while driving and those choices can sometimes mean the difference between a normal life and horror.
