The foundational principles that Driving Dynamics build much of its training upon is contained in One Second Advantage. The core idea is that drivers can avoid most crashes and collisions if they have just one more second to see and react to potential hazards.
Statistics back this up. Research into thousands of crashes shows that drivers could have avoided about 90 percent of them with one more second to react to the situation. Those odds get even better the more time drivers have in critical situations.
The principles of One Second Advantage are woven into every type of training Driving Dynamics offers, from in-person sessions to instructor-led virtual courses. Those principles revolve around three key areas drivers must learn: Looking, Steering and Braking.
One Second Advantage and Defensive Driving Skills
When training drivers, Driving Dynamics incorporates a series of ideas that lead to developing strong defensive driving skills. One Second Advantage is based on some of these skills. Its core teaching revolves around three important areas.
Looking
This involves looking where you want to go and steering where you want to go, with your hands following your eyes. Drivers are taught how to safely look farther ahead, utilize peripheral vision, so they can see potential dangers sooner and give themselves more reaction time. Drivers also learn how to adjust mirrors to reduce blind spots and clearly see hazards on all sides of a vehicle.
Steering
Drivers learn how to steer with hands and arms, as well as the details of proper positioning. For example, they learn to grip the wheel at 9 o’clock and 3 o’clock with arms relaxed and elbows slightly bent. These enhanced rotational techniques offer superior directional control. Even small positional changes can make a big difference in avoiding crashes.
Braking
Drivers learn to employ long duration braking that involves a slow, smooth stop over a large distance. A major win in avoiding rear-end collisions, applying the brakes sooner gets brake lights flashing sooner and also leaves some braking reserve available when needed.
Other Ideas from One Second Advantage
The above is just a brief overview of what fleet drivers learn when they take courses that include One Second Advantage. They also learn about:
- Maintaining a safety zone - the space between their vehicle and the one directly in front of them
- Following the three-second rule to maintain a safe cushion
- Techniques to stay safe while maneuvering in a parking lot, including signaling intentions and centering the vehicle in a space
With decades of experience, Driving Dynamics has developed training based on data-driven research and analysis of hundreds of thousands of crashes and collisions. With the convenience of online courses available, there’s never been a better time for fleet drivers to get the skills they need to improve performance and make their jobs safer.
