Spring brings warmer temperatures and fading memories of winter and driving in the ice and snow.
Drivers should not let their guard down, though.
Spring showers and thunderstorms often lead to poor driving conditions. In fact, according to the Auto Insurance Center website, the National Highway Transportation Safety Administration reports rain causes more fatal accidents than snow in 39 out of 50 states.
In other words, precipitation doesn’t have to be frozen for it to be dangerous.
“Those statistics are partially explained, of course, by the fact that many drivers have the good sense to stay home during a bad snowstorm,” Debbie Hersman, president and CEO of the National Safety Council told Edmunds.com. In addition to more people being out on the roads, Hersman told Edmunds drivers do not exercise enough caution on the roads and ignore basic safety guidelines.
Drivers should follow these six safety tips during poor spring weather conditions.
1. Use caution. Safe driving begins before getting behind the wheel of a car, according to an American Automobile Association guide. On a normal day, driving requires alertness and a calm demeanor. When it’s raining, roads become slippery and drivers need to increase their level of awareness of road conditions and what is happening around them.
2. Prepare your car. As people are driving around more due to warmer temperatures, drivers should make sure their cars are road ready.
a. Check tire tread: it should be at least 2/32 of an inch — use a quarter to check tread depth. The coin head should always be covered by the tread in some area.
b. Maintain proper tire pressure: an underinflated tire does not respond well on the road, especially if it’s slippery.
c. Keep washer fluid filled: Rain and mud can splash on the front and rear windshields, so make sure the windshield washer fluid system is filled and working properly.
d. Check the lights: the car’s headlights, tail lights, turn signals and brake lights should all be functioning to make it easier for other drivers to see in poor weather conditions.
e. Check the brakes: make sure the car’s brakes are working properly to reduce excessive skidding. Note: hard breaking in the rain can cause hydroplaning — when tires come up off the road due to ponding water — and losing control of the car.
3. Avoid cruise control. AAA also recommends maintaining manual control of the car, because using cruise control in the rain can lead to losing control of the car. A driver’s attention should remain on operating the vehicle and on the road.
4. Slow down. It seems logical, but many drivers don’t adapt their speed to slippery, wet roads. Even a car with new brakes won’t slow down on a wet road as well as on a dry one. Edmunds.com suggests reducing speed by one-third on rainy days.
5. Keep your distance. Your car should be at least five seconds behind the next car on wet roads due to longer stopping distances. To mark the distance, watch the car in front of you as it passes a sign or a traffic light. Then, count the seconds it takes you to pass the same sign or light. If it’s less than five seconds, then slow down.
6. Know how to get out of a skid. If your car goes into a skid, then AAA recommends the following steps:
a. Continue to look at your path of travel down the road.
b. Steer in the direction you want the front of the vehicle to go.
c. Avoid slamming on the brakes.
d. When the rear wheels stop skidding, continue to steer to avoid a rear-wheel skid in the opposite direction.
These simple tips can mean the difference between life and death when driving in bad weather conditions.
