'Covering the brake' is an essential skill for smarter driving.
Passing a Road Test | Covering the Brake
Introduction
Hi there smart drivers.
Rick with Smart Drive Test talking to you today about road test smart "quick tip" that you need to know: 'covering the brake.'
What is covering the brake?
And when should you cover the brake?
When you identify a hazard that could potentially cause conflict with you on the roadway you need to put your foot over the brake pedal.
As you can see here in the image, the person is just putting his/her foot over the brake pedal.
They're not actually engaging the brake or putting the brake on, they're just putting their foot over the brake until the hazard passes or they pass the hazard.
That way it cuts down the reaction time moving your foot from the accelerator to the brake and you are ready if something materializes or that hazard becomes a problem.
Following Distance - Why are you so darned close!
The other thing that you can do in terms of covering the brake that helps to reduce that reaction time is increasing your following distance.
If you see a hazard that materializes - simply take your foot off the accelerator & the vehicle begins to slow and you put your foot over the brake to cover the brake.
Don't actually apply the brake.
Lots of drivers that I see who are upgrading to a higher class license use the brake way too much.
Increased Fuel Consumption - You're Burning Money
When you use the brake too much it increases fuel consumption because every time you slow that vehicle down you got to get it going again.
So reduce your use of the brake by simply covering the brake and this is an imperative skill for a road test.
When you're on the road test and your going through an intersection and you're not quite sure that there might be vehicles coming from the other direction, just cover the brake as you're going through and that cuts down your reaction time.
Reasons for Covering the Brake
Hazard identification and recognition are one of the most difficult skill sets that all drivers must learn.
Vehicles and pedestrians along the roadway are potential hazards that could cause an incident.
If motorists identify these hazard early and respond appropriately—such as reducing speed, covering the brake, and/or increasing following distance—a potential collision can be avoided.
The following clues along the curb are some the hazards a motorist must be able to identify:
- a parked vehicle with the steering wheels turned out;
- a driver sitting behind the steering wheel;
- a parked vehicle running with exhaust coming from the tailpipe;
- any lights - brake, turning signals, or reverse lights;
- people walking, running or playing near the road.
If any one of these indicators are present, a drivers should be "covering the brake" to prepare to stop or take evasive action.
