If you see a small cardboard box in your lane while driving, what should you do?

Steering around the box without making a sudden or unsafe move is the safest and most sensible option when encountering an obstacle in your lane. This allows you to avoid potential damage to your vehicle or injury to yourself or others while maintaining control of your vehicle.

Making a sudden move can lead to losing control, which poses a greater risk than simply navigating around the object smoothly. Similarly, stopping immediately to inspect the box can create hazards for vehicles behind you and might lead to a rear-end collision. Running over the box could cause damage to your vehicle or create additional hazards, especially if the box contains unknown materials. A sudden lane change could also endanger other drivers, particularly if there are vehicles in the adjacent lanes. Therefore, the approach of steering around it while keeping safety as a priority is the most prudent action in this scenario.