Road Courtesy and Driver Attitude
Courtesy is a rule, not a mood
Philippine law penalises reckless driving and distracted driving (RA 10913), and courts treat aggressive behaviour behind the wheel as evidence of it. On the exam, courtesy questions are really asking: does this driver reduce risk, or add to it?
Behaviours examiners expect
- Give way when another driver is already committed - at a merge, a narrow bridge, a driveway or a pedestrian crossing. Right of way is something you give, not something you seize.
- Signal every lane change and turn, early enough to be useful, and cancel it afterwards.
- Use the horn as a warning, not as a rebuke. It is not for expressing irritation at a slow vehicle in front.
- Dip your headlights for oncoming traffic and for the vehicle you are following; do not use high beams to bully a slower car out of the lane.
- Protect the vulnerable - pedestrians, cyclists, motorcyclists, children, older persons and persons with disability. Give cyclists and motorcycles room; do not crowd them at intersections.
- Yield to emergency vehicles using sirens and flashing lights, and do not tailgate a funeral procession or an ambulance.
The legal twist worth knowing
Having the right of way does not excuse you from avoiding a collision. A driver who could reasonably have avoided a crash may still be cited for reckless driving even if the other party violated a rule. Items test this directly.
Trap
Options describing retaliation - blocking a tailgater, braking sharply to "teach a lesson," chasing a vehicle - are always wrong. The correct response to a tailgater is to increase the gap ahead and let them pass.
Rule of thumb
Space, signal, patience: create room, announce your intention, and never let another driver's mistake become your crash.