Music….or traffic reports?
Each time the nice weather is here, it’s time to enjoy it while driving. I’ll usually have my window down to enjoy the fresh or somewhat fresh air many times and of course enjoy the sunshine. Like many people, the music tends to come on more often and at a louder volume during nice weather. Do you crank up the tunes when the weather is nicer and windows are open?
I think it’s Important to enjoy life day by day, but if your choices interfere with safety we need to make other choices. Have you thought of how the loud music may interfere with the thoughts you make as a driver? Can it distract you so much that you make driving errors?
I know many people who love to crank up the tunes when their driving, especially during sunny days. If the music is loud, would you be able to hear the horn of another driver if they’re trying to warn you of impending danger? Would you be able to hear the sirens of any emergency vehicle if your music was up too loud?
Keep the music loud enough to enjoy it, but ensure you can still hear what’s going on outside of your vehicle. As I’m ready to head out on my summer vacation, my wife has put together selected songs for our trip. We’ll be on quiet highways during most of our trip, and with the trip starting out on a Saturday, there’s less traffic to clog up our roads. It’s a perfect time to enjoy the music.
Each time I’m driving in heavy traffic, especially on the freeway/highway, I’ll keep the radio on and tune into the local traffic reports. Keeping up to date with what’s going on with the traffic is my job as a driver. It lets me know if I should take an alternate route because the route I’m on may be held up because of a collision.
I’ll also listen to the local traffic reports in the morning before I leave for work at any time of year, especially during poor weather and road conditions. If my usual route is blocked, I’ll need to change my route and most likely have to leave earlier so I can get to work on time. All I can say is; thank you to our traffic reporters. You make our job as a driver much easier and safer, especially during rush hour.
Enjoy your music, but make the proper decision as to when to listen to music, how loud it should be and if you should listen to traffic reports instead. It may help you reach your destination much easier and with less stress or frustration.
**Failing to plan is planning to fail…HERE