It's that time of year again. Even the best drivers can be caught off guard by winter weather conditions, and it only takes one moment of complacency to make a costly mistake. Don't let the changing seasons catch you off guard, as they do for a large portion of the general driving public.
Winter necessitates increased attentiveness and driving abilities, and the ice, snow, wind, and cold put each driver's professionalism to the test.
We took this video from ET Transport YouTube Channel
Top winter driving safety tips for winter driving and safe driving in snow for truck drivers include:
Keep an eye out for brake lights on the vehicles ahead of you.
Check that your lights are turned on and operating.
Clear snow and ice off mirrors, windows, lights, and reflective tape.
Keep your windows defrosted by using your air conditioner. Dry air is conditioned air.
Keep an eye on the powdery snow cloud that has formed around your unit. There may be an automobile hiding within.
Keep an eye out for other automobiles whose main source of vision is a 3-inch-by-3-inch scraped-off-the-windshield region.
Look and be seen. Keep an eye on your surroundings. Look ahead, to the sides, and behind you.
Take particular precautions when entering and exiting ramps. A sudden bend on a slick road spells disaster.
Keep an eye out for bridges. Their surfaces are the first to ice and can be as slippery as the road itself.
When approaching stop signs and red lights, begin braking early. Intersections can be much icier than the roads that lead to them.
Take into account the wind. Prepare for it in wide open spaces or when emerging from behind a hill, tunnel, or overpass. When driving an empty trailer, use extra caution.
Don't "fall" for rain-slickened roadways. Maintain traction and avoid using cruise control by driving slowly. If your wipers are on, the cruise control should be turned off. Increase your following distance so that you can respond to other vehicles in difficulties ahead of you.
Keep in mind the necessity of maintaining a good following distance (7-14 seconds or more) as well as your ability to anticipate what the other driver may do.
Avoid driving in the tracks of other vehicles. Their spinning wheels have most likely compressed the snow into ice.
Accelerate and decelerate slowly and gently. Keep in mind that the tractor must tow the trailer. The conditions are ideal for a jackknife if the pavement is slippery.
Take it easy. Speed reduces traction. Slowing down will help you get traction.
Turn off the engine brake while approaching bridges, on-ramps, or exit ramps on wet, ice, or snow-covered highways.
Defensive driving refers to the professional driver's skill to operate the vehicle without being engaged in an avoidable collision. Allowing the driver in the wrong to have the right of way is sometimes necessary.
Keep in mind that you are the captain of your ship, and you make all of the decisions. Truck drivers must make the safe decision to shut down for winter conditions and then communicate that decision effectively.
We use a tool to capture how users interact with our websites so we can analyze and improve the user experience. Clicking “Accept” allows us to use this tool when you visit our websites. For more information, read our Privacy Center article on Cookies and tracking.
