What should pilots avoid doing while taxiing to ensure safety?

While taxiing, pilots must prioritize safety and situational awareness. Riding the brakes can lead to several problems, including overheating the brakes, causing potential failure, and interfering with the ability to respond to unexpected obstacles or changes in the taxiway environment. When pilots are overly reliant on braking while taxiing, they can easily become distracted from scanning the area for other aircraft, ground vehicles, and pedestrians, which are crucial for maintaining safe operations.

In contrast, taxiing too fast can indeed be dangerous, as it reduces the pilot's reaction time to any potential hazards. Taking notes or adjusting their seats could cause distractions and momentarily divert their focus from the critical task of taxiing, but these actions do not impact the control and maneuverability of the aircraft as directly as riding the brakes. Therefore, avoiding riding the brakes is essential to maintaining control and ensuring an efficient and safe taxi process.