How do I get over my fear of highway driving?

Question

How do I get over my fear of highway driving?

Answer 1

start walking. that usually takes care of it.

Answer 2

Spend a little more time driving when traffic is light. Normally around 8:30 in the evening. Also travel around 55 to 65 and stay in the right lane. This lane is for slower traffic. It will allow you to get more comfortable with the flow of high speed traffic and you'll stay out of the way of everyone who wishes to get around you.

Answer 3

Practice makes perfect.  

The biggest mistake I think people make when driving on a freeway (if that's what you're talking about...) is that they try to merge onto the freeway at too SLOW a speed.

Every car is designed to accelerate hard if necessary.  When getting onto the freeway, it's NECESSARY to get up to the speed of traffic - even if that means flooring it to get up to speed.  You'll find that it's MUCH easier for you (and for those behind you) to merge onto the freeway if when you're moving at the same speed as the traffic than to try and merge going 20mph slower than traffic.

The other thing to consider when driving on the freeway is don't be a "left-lane-camper" and try to stay away from "left lane campers" when at all possible.  Don't drive in the far left lane unless you're passing someone and stay away from others who drive slowly in the far left lane.   From what I've seen in many thousands of miles of highway driving is that the leading cause of "road rage" on the freeway is when someone is holding up a long line of traffic by driving slowly in the far left lane.  Some people will do insanely crazy things to get around "left-lane-campers", often times putting the "camper" and other drivers near the "camper" in significant danger.

Answer 4

practice or drive more often to make you comfortable on freeway.

Answer 5

What makes it difficult is that it’s takes a few of the more common feared situations and bundles them together for the driver.

Not only are you going at a high rate of speed, but you’re likely traveling further than home or your “safe place” than you would like, are more likely to encounter bridges, and will be unable to pull over and escape the situation readily if you feel anxious.

What a lot of people really hate about driving on the highway, and why it causes such an intense fear of driving, is because people feel trapped.  They feel like they can’t escape the situation if they get anxious, that exits are so far from one another.  

Getting on the highway takes a certain level of commitment that isn’t necessary when you can turn around and go home whenever you want.  It’s not the same as being able to pull over into any parking lot and take a break, or get out of the car, etc.

Think you’ll lose control and twist the wheel into traffic or off the bridge?  You won’t.  Think your mind will spin too fast and you’ll slip into madness?  You won’t, it doesn’t work that way.

Maybe you’ll have to pull over and you’ll disrupt traffic and run across the highway and have to be restrained and be on the news and be humiliated.  Nope.  Won’t happen.