In a traffic emergency, which rule helps you avoid a collision?

• A. You should brake hard and stay in your lane
• B. You should honk and continue
• C. You can almost always turn to miss an object more quickly than you can stop
• D. You should speed up to clear the area

Answer: (C)

In a traffic emergency, your chance to avoid a crash often lies in changing your path quickly rather than trying to come to a full stop. Stopping distance is longer than the distance you can cover by steering, especially once you include your reaction time. By turning to miss the object, you create a new path and can often avoid the collision faster than you could by braking hard.

Keep the steering smooth and controlled, look toward the direction you want to go, and only steer if you have a safe space to move into. Braking hard while remaining in the same lane may not give you enough distance to stop in time, honking and continuing doesn’t remove the obstacle, and speeding up reduces your ability to react and can make the situation worse. Steering to miss is the safer option when an obstacle is unavoidable.