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Safe Winter Driving
Winter Driving Tips for Non snow regions
There are a few simple things that you can do to make your winter driving safer this year. No one intends to have the inconvenience, expense, and pain of a car crash, but knowing and setting right the factors involved can make a big difference in the safety of you, your passengers, and those driving around you.
Your Vehicle’s Condition
Where the Rubber Meets the Road
A survey published by USA Today analyzed auto crashes which resulted in injury or death with a vehicle-related cause. Tire safety was the number one contributor - more than all other vehicle causes combined. When are your tires not safe? It depends on the road conditions (dry, rain, snow, black ice); tire conditions (type, wear, inflation, load), and your driving.
The tread depth of your tires can be checked in three or four spots across the tread with a tread depth gauge, with tread-wear indicators built into tires or visually with a penny.
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The Penny Test Hold a penny, head first, into the tread “valley” - if you can see the top of Lincoln’s head, then that portion is worn below the legal depth of 2/32 of an inch. Measure in four spots across the tread. Tires with two adjacent valleys at 2/32 or less are worn out. Loss of control and a crash is worse than being illegal, so err towards safety, especially in the winter. |
Driving in the rain at 45 mph or more, even brand new tires ride on a film of water (hydroplaning). The tread is designed to evacuate the water so your tire can regain contact to the pavement. With less tread it takes even longer to regain road contact. If you’re in doubt, ask several friends for a reputable tire shop. Most will give free safety inspections of your tires and check your air pressure.
Special traction situations call for cool thinking - even before you get into trouble. At the first rain, when there are leaves, mud or gravel on the road, slow down and give yourself more of a margin, because it will be harder to steer and to stop.
Driving with your eyes closed?
Driving with your eyes closed sounds ridiculous and dangerous. If your windshield isn’t clear enough to see, do you want to be on the road? Your windshield wiper blades, defroster, defogger, and even the glass can make a difference. The small investment in wiper refills or blades can pay off in greater safety for you and your loved ones.
The Space Between Your Ears
The winter road conditions are a little less forgiving than our drier seasons, so THINK!
Good drivers are aware of what’s going on around them, and if conditions start looking a little dicey, they think ahead about their options. A look ahead can help you slow down safely, or keep you from accelerating towards a stoplight.
A study by the AAA Foundation of Traffic Safety showed the decrease in reaction time with cell phone use - even more so with complex, intense discussions and with those over 50 years old. Read the study at www.aaafts.org//Text/Research/cell/cell0toc.htm.
What Are You Spreading Around?
After a Stanford game, as cars were leaving the parking lot, people were courteously alternating a merge to the exit - car to the left, then car to the right. Two men in sports cars met and neither would give in. Each had to be number one! They collided, and blocked the exit for all the other cars. Driving ego can be expensive.
Watch people’s reactions as you wave them in with a smile. Are you spreading joy or something less fragrant?