Winter Driving Advice
28 Dec 2011 Leave a Comment
in Driving Tips, Family Information Tags: Driving in Snow, Preparing for Winter, Winter Driving
If the last couple of years is anything to go by, it seems that winter weather in the UK has finally caught on to what it should be doing, and more and more places throughout the UK are seeing snow on a regular basis, lots of it – and plummeting temperatures. While all this may be perfectly normal for winter elsewhere in the world – it is something that in the UK we aren’t, even now, really used to or prepared for so whenever the snow starts to fall, the country grinds to a slippery halt. Part of the problem occurs when drivers abandon their vehicles in bad weather, causing roads to close, some of these abandonments may be un-necessary if the drivers followed some of the simple winter driving advice available to them.)
There are many things you can do to help make winter driving easier for both yourself and those around you. These range from ensuring you have a grit bin fully stocked so that you can salt your paths, driveways and even the road out in front of your house to making sure that you have prepared your vehicle before you travel. Below are some of the tips given to drivers at this time of year by the main driving agencies like the governments Highway Agency, and the AA.
Preparing your vehicle for winter
Making sure your vehicle is prepared for your journey is something that you as a driver should be doing all year round, but all this is especially important in winter. You should make sure that you do these checks regularly and always before undertaking a long journey.
- Make sure that the oil is at the correct level.
- Ensure that the water levels are correct in all areas of the vehicle (windscreen washer, radiators, etc)
- Replace and then regularly check the anti-freeze in your windscreen wash and your radiator.
- Make sure that your windows, number plate and lights are clean.
- If your battery has been known to be unreliable, replace it as cold weather flattens batteries faster.
- Check your tyres are at the right pressure, that the tread is legal, and there is no perishing on the sidewalls. For more detailed information on your tires please visit http://www.tyresafe.org
As well as making sure that your vehicle is physically prepared for winter driving, there are some things you should make sure are inside your vehicle in case of any problems on your journey. Your winter driving kit should include:
- A fully stocked first aid kit
- A mobile phone (fully charged) so you can call for help if you get stuck
- De-icer and an ice scraper
- A torch and a spare set of batteries
- A shovel (and if you have it a piece of old carpet you can put under the tyres for grip)
- A small container of grit or salt
- Jump leads
- Blankets and a set of warm clothes (including a hat and some boots)
- Reflective warning sign (also some warning lights if you can)
- Food (biscuits and energy bars are ideal as they are long life and are easy to store) and a thermos of warm drink.
- Sunglasses – this might seem odd, but you will need them as the glare from snow can easily dazzle you.
- You may also want to add a set of “snowsocks”, snow chains or some other item that assists with tire grip in case you get stuck.
The best advice for winter driving is if the weather is bad, don’t make your journey unless it is absolutely necessary… however, if you do decide you have to go out, in addition to the preparations mentioned above, you should take the time to plan your route as even though the roads may well have been treated, they could still prove challenging in places, especially where the traffic is infrequent. Before setting off on your travels, you should check the met office website for the weather report, the highways agency to see what the traffic situation on your route is, and you can keep up to date on the drive by listening to travel and weather reports on the radio.
So when the snow comes down, and you have no choice but to venture out in it, hopefully this winter driving advice will help make sure you get to where you are going safely.
