Driving on Snow and Ice

When you’re driving in winter weather it is important to make sure your vehicle is ready, and you are prepared to handle adverse road conditions. The following information can help make your drive safer on snow and ice.

Travel

  • Leave for your destination earlier than normal and plan for unexpected delays.
  • Failing to allow enough distance to stop is a major cause of winter driving accidents. Adjust your speed for the conditions and leave yourself additional room to stop. You should allow at least three times more space than usual between you and the vehicle in front of you.
  • Bridges, overpasses and infrequently traveled roads will freeze first. If the conditions are wet, shady areas may freeze over.
  • Brake gently to avoid skidding.
  • Do not use cruise control or overdrive on icy roads.
  • Drive with your lights on to allow other drivers to see you.

Maintenance

  • Replace your windshield wiper blades. Worn wiper blades can smear road spray, obscuring your vision.
  • Keep your windshield washer fluid topped off.
  • Use the appropriate temperature-rated windshield washer fluid.
  • Clean snow and ice off the front and rear windshield; as well as all side windows, mirrors and lights to make sure you can see clearly and be seen by others.

Be Prepared for an Emergency

  • Top off your vehicle’s fuel. In an emergency, it could be your only heat source.
  • Maintain an emergency kit with:
    • A flashlight.
    • Jumper cables.
    • Flares or emergency lights.
    • A small shovel.
    • Traction material such as sand or cat litter.
    • Additional heavy clothes, gloves and a blanket in the event your clothing becomes wet, or you are stranded for an extended period.

    Download a printable PDF and recording form here.

Driving Safety

Secure All Items in Your Vehicle

Newton’s first law of motion states, an object in motion continues in motion with the same speed and in the same direction unless acted upon by an unbalanced force. This is what is known as inertia.

Unsecured items in a vehicle will continue moving at the speed the vehicle is traveling until the item is acted upon; potentially striking the driver, vehicle occupants or the windshield and causing severe injury.

This same law of motion applies to all occupants within the vehicle. All vehicle occupants must wear a seatbelt. The risk of death of belted, front-seat occupants by unbelted, rear-seat passengers is nearly five times greater than when rear-seat passengers wear seat belts.

Be Aware of Blind Spots

The posts on each side of a vehicle’s windshield are called A pillars. Along with large, side-rearview mirrors, both the A pillar and side mirrors can momentarily create a blind spot. When coming to a stop at an intersection, be sure to look around the A pillar and side mirrors for pedestrians, people on bicycles or motorcyclists.

Don’t mount electronic devices on top of the dash or on the windshield, as they can create blind spots.

Minimize items collecting on the dash. When hit with sunlight, they can reflect off the windshield and obstruct the driver’s vision. For example, a person walking in a crosswalk was struck when a driver looked up, realizing the traffic signal had turned green and began to accelerate. A notepad on the dash created a white reflection on the windshield, temporarily obscuring the driver’s view of the pedestrian.

Safe Driving Distances

A vehicle will travel 66 feet every second at a speed of 45 miles per hour. If we look at mental processing time (perception/recognition), movement time (muscle movement), mechanical device response time (brake activation) and use three seconds for the average person to react and apply the brakes, the vehicle will travel 198 feet in the span of those three seconds. This does not account for any skidding distance. Make sure to leave enough space between your vehicle and the vehicle in front of you.

Download a printable PDF and recording form here.

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