Should You Slow, Stop or Speed Up?
Laws are written without regard to “Getting to the Point”!
The purpose of this post is to show you the best option to take when coming to a Yield Sign, for your safety and the safety of others.
In English terms, what is the law regarding a yield sign?
1. Approaching a Yield Sign, YOU must slow down to any vehicle that has the Right of Way.
If there is a Yield Sign, Right of way belongs to vehicles coming off the highway or those on a main road without at stop sign.
2. If you’re passing the Yield Sign when another driver has the Right of Way and an accident results, YOU are at fault.
What usually happens at Yield Signs
1. If you can manage to speed up enough to get in front by razor thin margins, you win!
Here’s the problem:
To achieve this victory, were you exceeding the speed limit which is usually 40 mph on the Frontage Road?
2. Thinking Freeway Traffic exiting at 55 mph should cause a backup waiting for you to clear the path.
3. With two lanes, just stay to the right.
That would work, unless they need to get in the right lane too. Now what?
Making the right choice can save you literally.
Yielding at 40mph for a car with Right of Way, will cost you at the MOST, 4 seconds.
If you do a side by side comparison to a collision:
1. The time you take exchanging your information with the other driver. Add time if the police are called. Then there is the time you waste getting your car fixed.
2. Now your insurance premium just went up…. For maybe 3 years. Ouch!
3. Hopefully, no one got hurt… That’s just another level of; “Your life just go harder”.
One definition of Yielding: Let someone else go ahead of you.
So consider just how much in a hurry you really are.
Would you like to learn more?
Attend our Classroom, In Person Defensive Driving Class at Golden Corral in Mesquite