Blind Spot (vehicle)

Blind Spot (vehicle)

A blind spot in a vehicle is an area around the vehicle that cannot be directly observed by the driver while at the controls, under existing circumstances. Blind spots exist in a wide range of vehicles: cars, trucks, motorboats and aircraft. Other types of transport have no blind spots at all, such as bicycles, motorcycles and horses.

In transport, driver visibility is the maximum distance at which the driver of a vehicle can see and identify prominent objects around the vehicle. Visibility is primarily determined by weather conditions (see visibility) and by a vehicle's design. The parts of a vehicle that influence visibility include the windshield, the dashboard and the pillars. Good driver visibility is essential to safe road traffic.

Blind spots may occur in the front of the driver when the A-pillar (also called the windshield pillar), side-view mirror, and interior rear-view mirror block a driver's view of the road. Behind the driver, there are additional pillars, headrests, passengers, and cargo, that may reduce visibility. Blind spots are affected directly by vehicular speed, since they increase substantially the faster one goes.