Safety Suggestions for Driving in Fall Weather – Safety

Autumn is across the corner and the season brings with it specific weather-related driving hazards. In actual fact, during the last several years, October is one among the months that experienced essentially the most roadway fatalities, in keeping with the National Safety Council.

So because the season shifts from summer to fall in September, it’s a very good time to remind your fleet drivers of issues of safety they might encounter in the approaching months and supply strategies for addressing those issues.

Coping with Leaves

The changing color of the leaves could also be beautiful to have a look at, but it surely means those leaves will soon be falling onto the road, creating complications for motorists. Fallen leaves can hide potholes, traffic lines, stop lines and other road markings that it’s worthwhile to see to drive safely.

Wet leaves are especially dangerous, because they create slick conditions that could cause you to skid when you’re traveling too fast or attempt to stop too abruptly.

In actual fact, the overwhelming majority of weather-related crashes — some 70% — occur on wet pavement, in keeping with the U.S. Department of Transportation. That’s way over the 18% that occur during snow.

As well as, fall foliage is a tourist attraction that may create traffic congestion that may result in greater crash risks. Motorists who’re gazing on the foliage aren’t focused on the drive, so that they might slow or stop unexpectedly, veer into other lanes or cut you off. And since they is probably not acquainted with the world, they might stop short to make a turn or change into distracted while searching for road signs or checking directions.

Listed below are some tactics to take note when coping with leaf-covered roads:

• Decelerate every time you see leaves on the bottom.
• If the road is wet or it’s raining, decelerate much more in areas of fallen leaves.
• Whenever you see out-of-area license plates, give those drivers more room and increase your following distance.
• Scan rigorously and stay alert for distracted drivers in areas that attract tourists taking a look at foliage.

Driving in Fog

As temperatures begin to drop further at night, the colder mornings will often give technique to fog — a dangerous weather condition for drivers, since it significantly reduces driving visibility.

Fog is very common at lower elevations, reminiscent of on roads near hills and mountains, but it could occur nearly anywhere if the conditions are right.

Many motorists mistakenly imagine that their high beam headlights will help to chop through fog, but the alternative is true: High beams make visibility worse by bouncing off the fog and creating glare.

Share these strategies along with your drivers:

• Use your regular headlights — not your high beams – within the fog. Or in case your vehicle has fog lights, use them to enhance visibility and to show you how to track the road markings and maintain your position in your lane.
• Reduce your speed greatly to compensate for reduced visibility within the fog.
• Allow way more following distance than you’d in good weather conditions.
• Approach curves and hills rigorously and at a reduced speed in case there’s a
• vehicle headed your way but not easily visible.
• Check the weather at night so you recognize whether to expect fog within the morning.
• Get an earlier start in your drive if fog is within the forecast.

Frosty Encounters

The identical drop in nighttime temperatures that may create fog also can result in frost, each in your vehicle and on the road. Frost in your windshield or other vehicle surfaces needs to be a warning sign that there could also be frost on the roads, too — a transparent indicator that it’s worthwhile to adapt your driving. Frost can occur anywhere, but it surely’s commonest on bridges and overpasses, in addition to areas of the road which can be shaded, reminiscent of the section of the road under an overpass.

• If frost is in your vehicle within the morning, assume it’s on the road, too.
• Take the time to clear frost out of your vehicle completely before you drive. Use your defroster and a snowbrush or scraper.
• Reduce your speed when you see or suspect frost on the road.
• Steadily decelerate prematurely of a bridge, overpass or other area that is probably going to be slick with frost, in addition to on ramps, along curves and when making turns.
• Don’t slam on the brakes abruptly while you reach a slick spot. Use slow, gradual braking to cut back your speed.

In response to the U.S. Department of Transportation, greater than 5.8 million vehicle crashes occur annually and roughly 21% of those — or simply over 1.2 million —involved hazardous weather conditions. Furthermore, the agency attributes some 5,376 fatalities yearly to weather-related collisions.