Make Sure You Know How To Stay Safe On The Road In The Winter
With winter comes inclement weather. If you have personal or professional obligations outside your home, the likelihood of you having to drive through inclement weather is high. In order to ensure your safety as well as the safety of other motorist on the road, it's important you know how to navigate through snow and ice.
Vehicle Prep
Part one of driving safe during inclement weather is ensuring your vehicle is prepped to handle the road. This process should begin with an inspection of your tires. Tires that have severe tread wear won't be able to afford you the level of traction you need to get through snowy conditions.
A tire with less than 2/32 of an inch of tread depth left is considered worn. If your tires are worn, it's time to replace them. For an extra boost, upgrade your winter tires to snow tires as they provide better traction and braking abilities than traditional tires on snow or ice covered roads.
Navigating Hills
If your travels will take you up a snow covered hill, resist the urge to power up. Accelerating all the way up a hill is almost a sure-fire way to send your wheels on a spinning frenzy. It's best to accelerate at the base of the hill instead. Doing this will help your vehicle build up inertia that can somewhat carry you to the top.
If you fail to do this and your vehicle's wheel start to spin, you can easily lose control of the vehicle or even get stuck. Either way, this isn't an ideal situation to be in. Try not to brake until you reach the top of the hill.
Protect Your Eyes
Although sunglasses are often synonymous with warm, sunny days, sunglasses are important every day of the year. However, they are especially important on days when the ground is covered in a layer of snow. When there is snow on the ground, as much as 85 percent of the sun's UV rays can get projected off the snow and towards your eyes.
When your eyes aren't protected, this snow reflection can make it harder for you to see the road ahead clearly, which is a safety hazard in and of itself. Make sure you are wearing appropriate eye protection all winter long.
Make sure you keep safe driving a priority all winter long. In the event you find yourself stuck or in another situation you can't get yourself out of, make sure you are calling on roadside assistance for help.