Keep your distance

I was saddened to read in the Oct. 29, 1996 edition that two people had died in a six car pileup. These deaths could have easily been avoided by keeping a sensible distance behind the preceding vehicle. In the above accident it is apparent that five vehicles were driving dangerously close to each other. This is not solely an Indonesian problem either. In the UK I had many legal cases involving concertina actions. It seems that many people do not have the foresight to predict that if the preceding vehicle stops quickly there needs to be sufficient distance to enable the following car to stop.

This is something that frequently irritates me, especially if I am the leading car and I am being tailgated, or if I am a passenger in a friend's car which is tailgating.

If people cannot predict the possibility of slamming into the back of the leading vehicle, then the only way to improve on their ignorance is by way of a public education program. Even if this would safe one life, it would be worth it.

ANNE-MARIE TAPP

Cilegon, West Java