Ice, Ice, Baby: Winter Driving Tips for Frozen Roads

Are you ready for the depths of winter? Due to a potentially record-setting El Niño pattern, meteorologists are predicting a particularly harsh season for Georgia, with “major snowfall, floods and even tornadoes into spring.”

Even without such dire warnings, Georgia winters can be notoriously tricky, on the roads in particular. Ready Georgia, a statewide preparedness campaign supported by the Georgia Emergency Management Agency/Homeland Security, has issued a number of handy winter driving safety tips that can help you and your family stay out of trouble as the snow falls, the ice freezes, and trucks lay down mountains of salt on our state’s roads and highways.

Keep this sound advice in your head (and maybe your glove compartment) over the next few months:

• Maintain at least a half tank of gas during the winter season.
• Keep an extra Ready kit in the trunk of your car. In addition to the basic essentials, consider adding a portable cell phone charger, ice scraper, extra blanket, sand for traction and jumper cables.
• Follow directions from local officials about driving during snow and ice storms, and drive with caution.
• SLOW DOWN to at least half your normal speed and use a low gear as you drive.
• Don’t stop going up a hill. Get some inertia going on a flat roadway before you take on the hill.
• Do not use cruise control and avoid abrupt steering maneuvers.
• Be mindful of road crews working to clear the snow and ice from the roadway.
• Motorists should not pass a dump truck spreading the salt/gravel mixture, as gravel may bounce up and could break windshields. Follow at least 100 feet behind all vehicles.
• If you come to a traffic signal that is not working, treat it as a four-way stop.
• Beware of black ice, especially on bridges, overpasses and shady areas. Four-wheel-drive may help your vehicle get going in the slushy stuff, but it’s of no use when you’re trying to steer or safely stop on a slippery road surface.
• Watch for fallen trees or power lines.
• If at any point during your trip you feel that the weather is too bad to continue driving, simply stay put.

If you have been injured in a car accident, please call The Parian Law Firm at (770) 727-5550 or chat live online with a member of our staff today. We can discuss your situation, evaluate your potential claim, and advise you of your options.