Rush Hour 101

Sitting in rush hour traffic can be the worst part of the day for many people. Whether it’s the dreaded drive to work in the morning or the stressful drive home. Everyone is trying to get somewhere at the same time, in a hurry, and it can be extremely stressful, annoying, and also dangerous (1 in 4 accidents occur during rush hour).

Check out these quick tips to surviving your daily commute:

1. Keep Calm and Carry On:
Staying calm in rush hour traffic isn’t always an easy task. People are in a hurry and driving crazy, but you don’t have to be one of those people (you just need to watch out for them).

It might be called RUSH hour, but don’t RUSH. Give yourself extra time to get to your destination to help make commuting less stressful. Leaving with plenty of time to spare can prevent unexpected situations, like an accident or road construction, from ruining your day.

Listen to music or a podcast. Good music and entertaining podcasts can help boost your mood and focus less on the negatives of slow traffic.

2. Avoid distractions:

Stay off your phone. With how quickly traffic can stop, checking your phone in rush hour can be very dangerous.

3. The grass isn’t always greener in the other lane:

Don’t try to beat the traffic. One of the riskiest moves in rush hour traffic is constantly switching to the “fastest” moving lanes. Typically in rush hour, lanes will go through a rotation of being stopped and speeding up. It’s best to just stick to one lane and avoid the temptation of merging to the fastest lane at the time.

Driving during rush hour can be terribly frustrating – but getting into an accident during this time can be even worse. When in heavy traffic it’s important to stay relaxed, remain patient, and keep focused on the road.