Extreme weather conditions can lead to unsafe road hazards. While it is best to stay off the road during times of extreme weather, sometimes it cannot be avoided. These tips will help you stay safe when driving during extreme weather conditions.
Prepare Your Vehicle Ahead of Time
There are some vehicle preparations that can actually improve the safety of your drive. Make sure your windshield wipers are working properly, keep your tires filled to the proper level, and have your vehicle winter-serviced each year. Taking these safety precautions ahead of time reduces your chances of having vehicle trouble on top of poor road conditions. You don’t want to get stranded in the middle of extreme weather.
Prepare an Emergency Road Kit
Keeping an emergency road kit in your trunk is useful for driving emergencies. Your emergency kit should include items like blankets, an ice scraper, road flares, dry food, water, and a backup cell phone or phone charger. If you have a roadside service membership, make sure you have this information also stored in your vehicle somewhere. Keeping a bag of cat litter in the trunk can also help improve traction if you get stranded.
Take Your Time
Rushing in extreme weather conditions often leads to an even more dangerous situation. Driving too fast on poor roads can make it difficult to stop without causing an accident. Icy and slippery roads are not always easily visible. You could drive for many miles with good traction and then hit a patch of black ice and spin out of control. If the weather is poor, slow your speed to a 10 mph and then adjust accordingly, based on your comfort level. Avoid slamming on your breaks and give yourself plenty of space to come to a full stop.
Keep a Large Distance between Other Cars
Poor road conditions also affect other drivers on the road. Tailgating can result in an auto accident if the person in front of you has to stop quickly. It is best to leave a minimum of 100 yards between you and other drivers. Avoid a collision in the event either of you needs to stop quickly or are unable to come to a stop by keeping your distance. If traffic is moving faster than you are comfortable with, switch lanes to a slower one and keep a large distance between the other drivers in the lane.
Know When to Pull Off
Just because you decided to drive despite poor road conditions, this does not mean that you have to stay on the road. If you find that the road conditions are much worse than expected, turn around and go home. If it is too dangerous to even drive home, pull off the road to a safe place. Even stopping in for a bite to eat can give the roads time to improve.
Extreme weather conditions can make driving unsafe. These driving tips will help you gauge the weather and practice safe driving, regardless of the weather.
Photo “Rainy Drive” by Roman Lakoubtchik licensed under CC BY-SA 2.0 | Cropped from original
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