Sicherheitsabstand (safe following distance)
Also known as: Safe following distance · Minimum following distance · Mindestabstand
Safe following distance is the distance to the vehicle ahead that normally allows stopping behind it even if it brakes suddenly (Section 4 StVO).
Section 4(1) of the German Road Traffic Regulations (StVO) requires a distance that normally allows stopping behind the vehicle ahead even if it brakes suddenly. It does not prescribe one fixed distance in metres or seconds for every passenger-car situation.
Speed, road conditions, visibility and weather affect the driving behaviour required. Rules of thumb therefore do not replace assessment of the actual situation.
In RoadReview Mobile, the instructor can document a following-distance situation as a marker with location and time and explain it in an audio memo. The student can reopen the documented location after the lesson.
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Updated