DEFENSIVE DRIVING POLICY

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• DEFENSIVE DRIVING POLICY

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Defensive Driving Policy

• West Liberty University is strongly committed to
  a sound and thorough defensive driving policy.
  While operating college vehicles, drivers should
  always drive in the safest manner possible.
• Specifically, our drivers must operate college
  vehicles in accordance with all provisions of
  this Commercial Vehicle Safety Training.

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Vehicle Inspection

• EACH DRIVER IS REQUIRED TO PERFORM THE FOLLOWING
  VEHICLE INSPECTION BEFORE TAKING THE VEHICLE
• Gas Level
• Lights
• Seatbelts
• Horns
• Brakes
• Mirrors

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MIRROR USAGE

• MOST people have their mirrors on their cars set
  improperly.
• To set your mirrors
• Sit in the drivers seat, lean so your head is
  touching the drivers side window. While leaning,
  your left mirror should only see the very back of
  your vehicle. This will help eliminate most of
  your left blind spot.
• Then lean to the right, for about the same
  distance of leaning, and do the same with the
  passenger side mirror. That mirror should see
  the very back of your vehicle only. This will
  help eliminate the right side blind spot.
• The rear view mirror should then be used to see
  strictly behind your vehicle .

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DEFENSIVE DRIVING PROCEDURES

• INTERSECTIONS
• Getting into and out of intersections without
  an accident is a mark of a good defensive driver.
  Besides your own skill level, intersections also
  demand anticipation of the actions of other
  drivers and taking appropriate evasive action as
  required.
• BACKING
• Backing is an extremely hazardous maneuver.
  If you are backing with the assistance of a
  guide, the ultimate responsibility for the safety
  of the backing maneuver remains with YOU.

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COLLISIONS

• FRONT-END COLLISIONS
• The primary way to avoid front-end collisions
  is by maintaining a safe and adequate following
  distance. You should be prepared for possible
  obstructions on the roadway, either in plain
  sight or hidden by curves or the crests of hills.
  A special situation occurs at night, when speed
  should be kept to a level that will allow you to
  stop within the distance illuminated by the
  headlights of your vehicle.
• REAR-END COLLISIONS
• As a driver, you risk being struck from behind
  if you do not maintain an adequate margin of
  safety in your own following distance. If enough
  space is not allowed in front of your car,
  chances go way up that somebody can (and will)
  impact you from the rear.

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PASSING and BEING PASSED

• PASSING
• Failure to pass safely indicates faulty
  judgment on your part as a defensive driver. You
  must also consider one or more of the following
  factors when passing
• Is there enough room ahead?
• Is there adequate space to move back into
  
• your lane of traffic after passing?
• Have you signaled your intentions?
• BEING PASSED
• As a driver, you must be aware of the actions
  of other drivers, and give way if another driver
  begins to sideswipe you or cut you off. A good
  defensive driver will avoid problems with this
  kind of accident situation.

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CELL PHONES, PAGERS

• Cellular Telephones, Walkmans and Pagers
• The following procedures apply to employees
  driving on college business who wish to use their
  cell phones while in the vehicle.
• A. External speaker and microphone must be
  included to allow hands-free operation.
• B. Drivers are to refrain from placing outgoing
  calls or responding to pagers while the vehicle
  is in motion.
• D. Incoming calls should be limited.
• E. For any vehicle equipped with a cellular
  telephone that does not meet the above equipment
  specifications, use of the telephone/pager is
  authorized only when the vehicle is safely
  parked.
• F. Employees are prohibited from using a Walkman
  or similar device while operating a college
  vehicle.

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EXTREME WEATHER and ROAD CONDITIONS

• Bad weather and other road hazards place special
  stress on any defensive driver. The best rule in
  any kind of bad weather or extreme road condition
  is get off the road safely and as soon as
  possible. If you absolutely must continue,
  slowing way down and increase the following
  distance are your best defenses, along with
  increased awareness.
• FOG
• Fog reduces available visibility and impairs
  distance perception, making it perhaps the most
  dangerous type of extreme weather condition.
• If possible, try to avoid driving in foggy
  conditions.
• Use LOW BEAM lights when driving in fog, NOT
  high beam.

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CONT

• RAIN
• When it rains, roads become covered with a
  thin layer of oil and other residues.
• Water on the road can also create a potential
  hazard of hydroplaning. This happens when a thin
  layer of water separates the vehicles tires from
  the road surface. REDUCING SPEED is the best way
  to avoid hydroplaning.
• You should use windshield wipers and
  defroster when driving in rain to eliminate the
  film on the windows when it rains.

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CONT.

• SNOW
• Light Snow, can cause a smooth surface on the
  roadway and become slick.
• Heavier Snow, can get packed on the road,
  forming an ice surface on the road.
• With both types of roads, the best is to drive
  slower and again, use windshield wipers and
  defroster.
• Like always, REDUCING SPEED is best way to
  adjust to the slippery road conditions.
• BLACK ICE
• This occurs when temperatures drop rapidly
  and any moisture on the road freezes into a
  smooth, transparent layer of ice. This is
  dangerous, because its very hard to see as you
  approach it.
• Determine the correct speed and safe
  following distance will be your best judgment.

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IMPAIRED DRIVING

• All drivers need to be aware of the potential
  hazards driving at night present.
• These include fatigue, reduced visibility,
  poor lighting, other motorists and animals on the
  road.
• Signs of Fatigue are yawning, trouble keeping
  your head up, start drifting on the road, and
  daydreaming.
• If you experience any of these signs, pull off
  the road immediately.
• The driver must not operate a vehicle at any time
  when his/her ability to do so is impaired,
  affected, influenced by alcohol, illegal drugs,
  prescribed or over-the-counter medication,
  illness, fatigue or injury.

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SAFE FOLLOWING DISTANCE

• TAILGATING is probably the single most common
  complaint lodged by the general driving public
  against truck drivers. Here are some specific
  following distance guidelines
• 3-second interval at speeds up to 40mph
• 4-second interval at speed over 44mph
• add extra time for poor weather or poor
  road conditions.

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SAFE FOLLOWING DISTANCE cont.

• or allow yourself to see the tires on the
  pavement of the vehicle in front of you.
• When following tractor trailers keep the truck
  mirrors in site. Remember If you cant see the
  mirrors, they cant SEE YOU.

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SPEED CONTROL

• Speed limits are set for a reason. Please stay
  within the limits.
• RADAR DETECTORS are prohibited in college
  vehicles.
• Moving violations are the responsibility of the
  driver.
• Parking tickets are the responsibility of the
  individual signing out the college vehicle.

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DEFENSIVE DRIVING CHARATERISTICS

• Developing defensive driving habits involves
• Making safe and legal driving decisions
• Creating a stress-free personal driving space in
  and around your vehicle
• Driving to your destination safely, without a
  ticket or collision, or compromising other
  drivers safety
• Practicing courtesy, compassion, common sense,
  and cooperation
• Recognizing the risks of hazardous driving
  conditions and behaviors

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PERSONAL RESPONSIBILITY

• In order to prevent collisions and violations, we
  need to remember that defensive driving is doing
  everything reasonable in spite of conditions
  around us and the action of others.
• The most difficult thing about being a defensive
  driver is taking personal responsibility for our
  actions instead of blaming the other person or
  coming up with excuses.

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WHAT CAN WE DO?

• Drivers doing something wrong cause most
  collisions to occur ( in other words, violating a
  traffic law or doing something unsafe.) On the
  other hand, if we take personal responsibility
  for obeying traffic laws and make safe driving
  decisions, our chances for collisions drop
  sharply.

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RISKS

• Before we choose to take a risk and give someone
  or something else control, we should ask
  ourselves 2 questions
• 1. Is getting what I want or where I want so
  important that I am willing to risk my life.. Or
  other peoples lives?
• 2. Am I willing to be involved in a collision or
  get a ticket just to get to work on time, or
  ahead of someone else or have some fun?

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Statistics

• Statistically, in your lifetime you will be
  involved in a collision about every 10 years.
• Thats about six collisions in your lifetime.
• These numbers become more than statistics they
  become a serious threat to you and me. By
  learning to drive more defensively, we can reduce
  our chances of being the next statistic.

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REVIEW THREE LIFESAVING STEPS

• 1. RECOGNIZE THE HAZARD
• Use your three senses vision, hearing,
  smelling
• 2. UNDERSTAND THE DEFENSE
• Know what to do to avoid collisions
• 3. ACT CORRECTLY
• Time is crucial in avoiding collisions.
  Knowing what to do and doing it in time to avoid
  a collision is crucial.

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DRIVING TRAINING COMPLETION

• _______________________ has successfully
  completed the Defensive Driving Course Training.
  Completion of this course is required before any
  employee is authorized to drive a West Liberty
  vehicle. The College requires that this course
  be repeated if the supervisor feels theres a
  need to remain eligible to drive College
  vehicles.
• _____________________________________
• Drivers Name Date
• ______________________________________
• Trainer Date

I give West Liberty University authorization to
obtain a Motor Vehicle Record (MVR) check
annually. ___________________________ Signature
Date
Copy of drivers license
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DEFENSIVE DRIVING QUIZ

• Please answer TRUE of FALSE
• 1. When backing up in your car, the
  responsibility of an incident is of the other
  person? _________
• 2. The best way to avoid a front end collision is
  to maintain an adequate following distance?
  _________
• 3. Upon driving a college car, the driver is not
  responsible in doing a vehicle inspection of such
  items as tires, gas level, and seatbelts._________
  
• 4. When passing, it is not important in judging
  the room ahead of on coming cars? _________
• 5. When being passed, it is up to you to give way
  to the passing car so you dont get cut off?
  _________
• 6. Fog reduces visibility and is one of the most
  dangerous type of extreme weather conditions?
  __________
• 7. When driving and the visibility is down due to
  fog, it is best to pull off to the side of the
  road and wait till fog dissipates? _________
• 8. Use High-Beam headlights when driving in fog?
  _________
• 9. Rain makes the chance of Hydroplaning
  increase? ___________
• 10. When theres water on the road, it is ok to
  maintain the normal speed that you would drive?
  __________
• 11. If snow or rain on the roads, it is best to
  slow down and give more distance between you and
  the next car? _________
• 12. It is critical to require ALL passengers in
  the car to wear safety belts?____