As you drive professionally, you control the space around your truck. Tailgating, or following too closely behind the vehicle in front of yours, is both rude and dangerous. To some degree, you also control the space behind your truck to prevent others from being in a position to tailgate you.

The formula to calculate Total Stopping Distance is:

 Perception Distance 
+ Reaction Distance 
+ Brake Lag Distance 
+ Effective Braking Distance 
-----------------------------
= Total Stopping Distance

The definition of an aggressive driver is not dependent on the vehicle being driven (as we shall soon see).

It appears the truck driver is vitally aware of the space in front of him.

1. A dark truck behind a car. Is there sufficient room?
2. A red car following way too closely to the P.A.M. truck in front of it. Can the truck driver even see the car behind it or is it traveling in its "blind spot"?
3. A flatbed unit behind a four-wheeler. Is there sufficient room?
4. The car in front of us, following the truck in front of it. Is there sufficient room?

The trucker is so close that it looks like the truck is pushing the car down the road!

Is there sufficient room?

This picture is from Wikimedia, having this description: "A rear-end collision in Yate, near Bristol, England, in July 2004. The car failed to stop when the articulated lorry stopped at a roundabout. The car's bonnet can be seen deep under the rear of the lorry. There were no injuries."

The British term "lorry" is equivalent to a big truck in the USA, just as a "bonnet" is what Americans would call a car's hood.

Money saving tip: Even seemingly minor incidents that happen as a result of tailgating are totally avoidable. They are preventable. Besides being downright embarrassing, they can be injurious, time-consuming and expensive.

Wikipedia says regarding a rear-end collision:

A rear-end collision (often called simply rear-end or in the UK a shunt) is a traffic accident wherein a vehicle (usually an automobile or a truck) crashes into the vehicle in front of it, so called because it hits its rear. ...

A typical medical consequence of rear-ends, even in case of collisions at moderate speed, is whiplash. In more severe cases permanent injuries... may occur.

For purposes of insurance and policing, the driver of the car that rear-ends the other car is almost always considered to be at fault due to not being within stopping distance or lack of attention.

One of the risks of following too closely is the accusation of being an aggressive driver or having road rage. Since you are the professional, please practice professionalism.

Is there anything you can do if someone is following you too closely? Yes, there is! Simply slow down enough to make the driver behind you want to pass you!

Consider the many potential costs associated with rear-end collisions:

• insurance increase;
• hospital bills;
• therapy and rehabilitation;
• traffic ticket and fine;
• possible loss of your job;
• getting sued; and
• possibly others.

Our advice: Just don't tailgate!