Highway driving can be exciting when you first start out. You will be looking out for potential dangers and concentrating on your driving skills because your speed is high. After a few hours the drive can become boring, and concentration can begin to lower. Soon poor driving abilities begin to show themselves. It is imperative that a driver always monitor the road and traffic around them. Changes can appear quickly, which will require fast action from the driver.

Inappropriate speed for the prevailing road conditions is the biggest single cause of accidents on the motorway. At 70 mph an alert driver in a high performance car will take 20 meters to react to a hazard and then a further 50 meters to come to a stop, providing his brakes and tyres are in excellent condition. That means it will take most drivers in excess of 70 meters to come to stop in an emergency.

These increased stopping distances at motorway speeds demonstrate the need to maintain at least a two second gap between you and the vehicle in front. To gauge your distance, pick out a roadside marker and then count how long it takes your vehicle to reach it after the car in front has passed it by.

Unfortunately other drivers may not be as thoughtful as you. They may pass you just to fill in that gap. It can be frustrating and potentially dangerous, but it is still up to you to maintain the proper distance of vehicles in front of you.

You may also find a driver is dangerously tailgating behind you, do not be drawn into this reckless behaviour and so, as soon as it is safe to do so, pull in and let them pass by. Remember that someone who is driving that recklessly will very likely cause an accident and you want to be nowhere near them when that happens.

Traffic can change in the blink of an eye. Before you realise what is happening you can be in a traffic jam. There are ways to protect yourself against dangers when this situation occurs. By looking as far ahead as you can you will be able to see the potential issues that may arise. You can then switch on your hazard warning lights to warn other drivers.

When driving for long periods of time your mind may begin to think of other things, leaving the driving task on autopilot. You will not have to shift gears often, or even have much input on steering. It is best to combat these feelings with a break every two hours. Service station breaks allow you to stop the fatigue and relax before continuing on.

If you still have some distance to go before you have the chance to pull off of the motorway and rest, then there are a few things you can do to help fight the fatigue. Consider turning the air conditioning down to cold or opening a window to get some fresh air onto your face. Turn up the radio or start a conversation with your passenger and switch off any driver aids, like cruise control, to sharpen up your concentration and awareness levels.

It can be simple to just listen to the music, enjoy the warm sun shining through the windows of your car, and forget about the important matters when driving. Still, you need to make sure your driving skills are at the optimal level throughout your trip, and be aware of the dangers so that you can react more quickly. Driving accidents occur fast, and are frequently fatal.

To help enhance a driver’s night time vision and safety on the motorway many cars now come fitted with HID xenon lights as standard. For cars fitted with normal headlights a new xenon range of upgrade bulbs, like the H1 car bulbs, are designed to quickly and easily replace ordinary halogen bulbs.