What is the standard following distance on highways?
1 Answers
If the vehicle speed exceeds 100 km/h, the following distance should be maintained at more than 100 meters. When the speed is less than 100 km/h, the following distance can be appropriately reduced, but the minimum following distance should not be less than 50 meters. The traffic spacing includes two aspects: one is the front and rear distance between vehicles, and the other is the lateral distance when two vehicles are parallel during overtaking. You can see following distance measurement signs at regular intervals on highways. The interval from 0M to 50M indicates a 50-meter gap, while the interval from 0M to 100M represents a 100-meter gap. You can use these signs to judge whether your following distance is appropriate. Since speeds on highways are generally high, maintaining an appropriate following distance is crucial for safety. Vehicle movement is dynamic, and not all road sections have such distance confirmation facilities at all times. While driving, you can use the internationally recognized "three-second rule confirmation method." The three-second rule means that regardless of speed, you should maintain a three-second time gap with the vehicle in front. The science behind the three-second rule is that, regardless of speed, there is always a three-second reaction time with the vehicle ahead. For example, at a speed of 120 km/h, the distance covered per second is approximately 33.33 meters, so the distance covered in three seconds is exactly 100 meters. At a speed of 100 km/h, the distance covered per second is about 27.77 meters, and the distance covered in three seconds is approximately 83.3 meters. The three-second rule represents the minimum time required to detect an emergency ahead, release the accelerator, apply the brakes, and effectively stop the vehicle. Therefore, the three-second rule is also known as the "life-saving rule."
