Question: What’s the appropriate following distance when you’re behind another car? Four seconds? Two seconds? Or a specific number of car lengths? When does it become tailgating? Answer: It depends.

How far behind other vehicles should you be for safe braking distance? Start counting from three seconds, and add seconds for heavier vehicles, high speed, tire-car condition, rain, snow, ice.

In a commercial driver’s license certification course at Lehigh County Community College, I learned a lot that changed how I drive my car every day. I’ll share one set of facts from Federal Motor ...