Many drivers exacerbate visibility problems by failing to properly adjust their side-view mirrors
So says Richard Van Iderstine, who last year retired from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration after a long stint monitoring visibility.
Typically, drivers adjust those mirrors so that their own vehicle is within view, providing a frame of reference. Instead, he says, drivers should adjust the mirrors almost as far outward as possible, so a vehicle in the adjacent lane will just come into view of the side mirror as they are passing out of view of the center inside mirror. Then, those vehicles in adjacent lanes will remain in the view of the side mirrors until they come into the driver’s peripheral vision.
With a little movement of the head, all of the blind spots can be eliminated, Van Iderstine says.
But mirror adjustment remains highly controversial. The California Highway Patrol, for instance, requires that officers look over their shoulders, rather than rely on mirrors.