Safety Tips: Low-Visibility Driving

Things to do while driving with low visibility:

• Plan your trip ahead of time and remember to monitor the local weather along your planned route.
• If visibility is reduced, you should slow down and turn your low beam headlights on.
• Signal turns well in advance and brake early as you approach a stop. Remember that the car behind you cannot see either.
• Keep your windshield and headlights clean, to reduce the glare and increase visibility.
• If you need to pull off the roadway, it is advisable to use the nearest exit or rest area.
• Be patient. It is better to delay your trip until the smoke or fog clears than to risk becoming involved in a traffic crash.
• Make sure everyone in the vehicle is buckled up and/or secured in child safety seats. Driving in adverse conditions increases your chance of becoming involved in a crash. By buckling up, you are reducing your chance of being killed or seriously injured by as much as 50% if you are involved in a crash, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.
• If you enter a zero-visibility area while driving, pull well off the main traveled portion of the roadway to avoid being struck by another vehicle.