Only a fool breaks the 2 second rule
At whatever speed you are travelling, a 2 second gap between you and the car in front will make it much more likely that you can react and hit the brakes in time if something goes wrong up ahead.
Every driver needs SPACE and TIME to react in the event of a hazard. (Even Richard Hammond didn't have enough SPACE AND TIME in this clip)
|
The clip is 9 mins. Watch from 2m11s to 2m53s...
The faster you go, the quicker things happen around you.
Therefore you need thinking time, and braking distance to stand any chance of avoiding a crash.
|
How to calculate the 2 second gap
As the car in front passes by a fixed object like a lampost or a footbridge, count 2 seconds. If you pass this point before you have finished counting, then you are too close.
But don't look at your watch! Count 2 seconds by saying the title of this page to yourself. It takes about 2 seconds to say at normal speaking pace.
Back to Keep Control Back to Stopping Distances Back to Speed