left turn menace- tips to be bit safer | GTAMotorcycle.com

left turn menace- tips to be bit safer

Make sure it is possible for other vehicles to see you. (First video touches on this.) Don't hide in blind spots. Shine your headlight towards that oncoming left-turner. If that means moving left in your lane ... do that.

If you are approaching an intersection in the right lane and there is a line of traffic stalled in the left lane (e.g. waiting to make a left turn), that is a recipe for trouble. Oncoming cars can't see you coming. SLOW DOWN.

Don't approach an intersection at a higher speed than other drivers are expecting. SLOW DOWN.
 
Make sure it is possible for other vehicles to see you. (First video touches on this.) Don't hide in blind spots. Shine your headlight towards that oncoming left-turner. If that means moving left in your lane ... do that.

If possible, try to move your headlight beam across their FOV (or close to it) using a SMIDSY weave. Human eyesight evolved to track movement; a driver is more likely to notice and properly judge a beam moving across their field of view as opposed to a "static" beam pointed at them.
 
The left turners risk is serious, but "blind" drivers can also do U turns in front of you or move into your space from an intersecting road. Aside from all the above techniques to be seen I've been using a modulator selectively for about 10 - 12 years. I've found that turning it on as approaching a threat vehicle is very effective as the high beam flashing at 4 - 8 cycles/second certainly seems to get their attention. Often drivers are creeping forward to do a left turn or enter an intersection and suddenly stop a split second after the modulator comes on. To me this means they may not have seen me and the modulator causes them to pause and look more carefully or it startles them into stopping to decipher what the fast flashing light is.

Riding with a modulator on all the time is very annoying to all, especially traffic moving along in your lane in front of you, and I don't recommend it.
 
I've managed to survive by always erring on the side of caution and always assuming that the driver is going to make the turn as I approach.
Slow down. 'Have an escape track planned
 
Number one tip would be to slow down and cover the brakes as you approach an intersection.

Sometimes even as little as 5 kph can make a difference between stopping in front of a car, or stopping in it.
 

Back
Top Bottom