Following another vehicle

Following another vehicle
To calculate a three-second crash avoidance space when following
another vehicle use this basic technique. As the rear of the vehicle in
front of you passes an object at the side of the road such as a power
pole, tree or sign, start a three-second count ‘one thousand and one,
one thousand and two, one thousand and three’.
If your car passes the object you picked before you finish the threesecond
count, you are following too closely. Your crash avoidance space
is not large enough. Slow down, and repeat the count again until the
three-second crash avoidance space is achieved.
In poor driving conditions, such as rain, night and gravel roads, it may
be necessary to increase your crash avoidance space to four or more
seconds.
To reduce the risk of driving into the rear of a vehicle, the threesecond
crash avoidance space is essential, as the vehicle in front has
the potential to stop very quickly if it collides with another vehicle or
stationary object.