by Tiffiny Carlson
As driver with a disability, admit it, you always have a few more things on your mind than the average driver.
Getting in and out of your vehicle can be a production, making sure your hand controls - and all the auxiliaries you may have - are in safe and working order at all times is always in the back of your mind, and for others (depending on their disability) driving is a workout in it of itself. Your brain is being used, quite heavily.
This is why my friends following the basic driving safety rules, you know the ones every driver is taught when the begin driving, is so important. We have no wiggle room, we have much less room for error. We, out of all the drivers on the road, should never get lazy. Here are three must-follow rules:
No texting: Texting and driving. Don�t do it. For some, like me, it�s not even a possibility. Both my hands are completely preoccupied - with one on the gas/brake, the other on the wheel, and since I don't have any dexterity, holding a cell and texting with my thumb is out of the question. I would never even try it with the voice activation on my cell�s headset.
And when what your hands are doing is a life or death situation, doing something as frivolous as texting shouldn't even be a consideration. I don�t care what the text is about. The human brain is only capable of concentrating in so many directions, before it misses someone (like a pedestrian).
Give yourself enough room
This means: Do not ride other drivers. Why should we avoid this other than it being polite road manners? You never know if your hand controls may break, and if they do, you want enough time to grab and pull your emergency brake (this was a tip my driving instructor made sure to drive home hard). Also, sometimes hand controls take a few extra seconds to respond. You just never want to get too close.
Know your limits
The road is no place to try to push yourself. If you're one of those persons with a disability who is always trying to see what they can do next, this should not be done when you're driving. For example, if you have a limited arm strength and are searching for a empty space parking spot, but it happens to be something that will take a lot of maneuvering to get into (like parallel parking on a busy street), consider whether or not it's safe to do it.
You don't want to be caught mid- traffic with a tuckered out arm. This should also be the case when attempting long drives. Make sure you know your stamina level.
And if you feel like you've forgotten some of the important safety rules all of us should be following, you can brush up on them here (great article from AOL: Rules for Safge Driving http://autos.aol.com/article/safe-driving-rules/
What safety rules do you live by?