Special section: Winter Driving Safety
down for a stoplight. Remember, it takes longer to slow down on icy roads.
• Drive slowly. Everything takes longer on snow-covered roads. Accelerating, stopping
and turning—nothing happens as quickly as on dry pavement. Give yourself time to
maneuver by driving slowly.
• The normal dry-pavement following distance of three to four seconds should be
increased to eight to 10 seconds. This increased margin of safety will provide the longer
distance needed if you have to stop.
• Know your brakes. If you have anti-lock brakes (ABS) and need to slow down quickly,
press hard on the pedal—it’s normal for the pedal to vibrate a bit when the ABS is
activated. In cars without ABS, use “threshold” braking, keeping your heel on the
floorboard and using the ball of your foot to apply firm, steady pressure on the brake
pedal.
• Don’t stop if you can avoid it. There’s a big difference in the amount of inertia it takes to
start moving from a full stop versus how much it takes to get moving while still rolling. If
you can slow down enough to keep rolling until a traffic light changes, do it.
• Don’t power up hills. Applying extra gas on snow-covered roads just starts your wheels
spinning. Try to get a little inertia going before you reach the hill and let that inertia
carry you to the top. As you reach the crest of the hill, reduce your speed and proceed
downhill as slowly as possible.
• Don’t stop going up a hill. There’s nothing worse than trying to get moving up a hill on
an icy road. Get some inertia going on a flat roadway before you take on the hill.
• Stay home. If you really don’t have to go out, don’t. Even if you can drive well in the
snow, not everyone else can. n
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