What to Do on the Road
The appearance and smell of your vehicle doesn’t matter all that much. Let it smell like French fries. Embrace that soccer mud. Let those sticky fingerprints linger.
Because safety matters most. Here are tips to help you be a safe driver for yourself, your family and your community.
Get situated
As a parent, it feels like you’re always running behind. So much to do, so little time, especially for yourself.
Take a few minutes to get yourself, your things and the vehicle in order before driving off. These precious minutes will pay off big time when you and your family arrive safe and sound.
- Put distractions like phones, food and drink out of reach.
- Secure any loose items so they won’t tip over or bounce around.
- Buckle up everyone in every seat no matter how short the trip.
- Adjust your lights, music, temperature and other controls.
- Place both hands on the wheel at 9 and 3 o’clock.
- Set your GPS to audio-only mode.
Check yourself before you wreck yourself (and your vehicle) for three types of distractions
It’s easy to go down the wrong path when you aren’t paying attention. What is this road, and why are those goats staring at me?
Watch yourself and other drivers like a hawk for these distractions:
- Visual: Taking your eyes off the road to look at your phone, in the mirror at your child or to the floor to find a fallen milk or water bottle.
- Physical: Taking your hands off the wheel to use your phone, reaching back to your child, adjusting controls or eating/drinking.
- Mental: Letting your mind wander or losing focus during an in-person or phone conversation, daydreaming or experiencing difficult emotions.
- Sound: Listening to loud music or noisy passengers or having a conversation or phone call.
Make a pit stop
Sometimes you just need a break, and that’s OK. Pull over to a safe place as soon as (safely) possible if you need to do anything other than drive.
- Make a phone call
- Answer a text
- Help your kids
- Eat or drink
- Reorganize bags
or items
- Adjust hair or makeup
- Change any controls
- Reset your GPS
- Stretch your legs
- Do a happy dance
Make a game out of it
Your kids might be more competitive than professional athletes. Put that to good use with Distraction Action. The person who spots the most distractions wins. Uh-huh, it’s that easy — and fun.
What to watch out for:
- Using the phone
- Eating or drinking
- Applying makeup
- Doing hair
- Watching a video
- Smoking
- Fiddling with the radio
- Loud music
- Reading
- Daydreaming
- Wearing headphones or earbuds