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Tailgating ‘rife’ on our motorways

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Motorway driving: crucial for business car drivers with sales appointments - but avoid nodding off at the wheel, says Caroline Holmes, who provides a series of useful tips

HERE’s a bizarre paradox: 60% of drivers admit to tailgating, and yet nearly all of us (95%) worry about being tailgated by other drivers.

A survey conducted by the safety charity Brake, and Direct Line insurance found that 60% of drivers also own up to speeding on the motorway with men by far the worst offenders with nearly 70% of us admitting to exceeding the 70mph speed limit by 10mph or more on a regular basis..

Ironically, motorway management signs like these, which include variable speed limits, were first trialled on the M42
Brake wants to see more managed motorways with variable speed limits and enforcement cameras

The dangers of tailgating are well known but the statistics suggest there’s no harm in repeating the obvious: drivers should always keep at least a 2 second gap between themselves and the car in front – double it in wet conditions or poor visibility.

How do you judge the distance? There can’t be a business driver who hasn’t seen the chevrons they sometimes paint on the road to show you, and if in doubt assume you’re too close.

Remember, at 70mph, never mind the 80+ most blokes do, you’ll travel 21 metres before you even hit the brake pedal, and that’s after you’ve become aware of any danger. The total stopping distance at 70mph is almost 100 metres – the length of a football pitch.

And if you’re an 80mph merchant, that goes up to 122 metres.

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