Your car breaking down in a freeway may be one of your worst nightmares. You may have envisioned it while driving along during your daily commute or you may have seen another person having car trouble amidst the heavy traffic. Nobody wants to be that person with the broken down car on the freeway, but frankly, it’s not an impossible scenario and you should be as prepared as possible for it.
Picture being 5 minutes away from your destination. You’re nearing your exit, and you suddenly notice that your car is acting quite strange. Instead of continuing to drive normally, your first reaction should be to toggle your hazard lights. This way, you can immediately alert other drivers to a possible problem with your vehicle, and they can act accordingly. Always keep in mind that other drivers aren’t going to know that you’re having problems, so be sure to immediately warn them by turning these lights on.
Once you’ve turned your hazard lights on, you’re going to want to pull over. Of course, doing this on a busy freeway can be tricky, but you’re going to want to avoid pulling over on the shoulder at all costs. If you’re confident that your car can make it to the next exit, simply keep driving until you reach it. Take the exit, and then pull over in the first available spot (such as a parking lot or driveway).
On the other hand, if your car is giving you more trouble than you’d like, you may have no other choice but to pull over in the shoulder. Try to go for the right shoulder if possible because it is near the slowest traffic. If this is not an option, you can also stick towards the left. You just don’t want to find yourself in the middle lane with nowhere to go because this could present the biggest set of risks for this particular situation.
Once you’ve pulled over, do not get out of the car. This is especially important if you are in the right shoulder. Stepping out of your car next to a busy freeway could cause injuries or even be fatal. Always remember that there could be drivers that aren’t aware of what’s going on, so don’t assume that everyone notices your situation. Stay in the vehicle until you’re positive it’s safe to exit.
While in the vehicle, you’ll need to call for help. You would typically call the police if you don’t belong to an auto club, and this is for your own safety as well as others’. If you don’t happen to have a phone on hand, help will probably arrive on the scene within a short amount of time. This will either be from caring drivers, law enforcement individuals or medical professionals.
If you’re still in the stressful situation of being stranded on the side of the freeway, you may want to either search for a call box or walk to the nearest gas station or other business for help. A call box is a type of telephone booth that is specifically in place for emergencies. They’re free to use, and they’re reliable for finding help quickly. If there is no call box in sight, you should immediately begin walking to the nearest place of business to use a telephone.