Safe Driving Tips for Winter Driving in Minooka!

When it comes to Chicago style weather, it seems that the South Suburbs get some of the worst of conditions. Extra winter driving precautions should be taken. Those drivers that are accustomed to more suburban style road conditions, with heavy salting and plenty of traffic control may be taken by surprise when driving in the Winter conditions in Minooka and the surrounding areas.

Blowing and drifting snow are commonplace on the roads in Minooka due to so much openness near farm land and industrial areas. Black ice is known to be in large swaths of roadway when the temperatures get well below freezing and regardless of the salting efforts, there’s simply too much blowing wind and too little traffic to keep the roads dry and clear, so black ice develops. Many times this black ice will sneak up rather quickly, as will snow covered roads.

Realize that you, nor your vehicle are invincible. Late model vehicles are great in so many ways, but because they are quieter and have less road feel than cars many of us grew up driving, unfortunately they tend to exaggerate your driving skills and the vehicle’s ability resulting in over confidence and a state of being “right on the edge” of control and out of control. The larger the vehicle, the more pronounced this false sense of security becomes.

You can help yourself to keep out of the ditch or a collision by practicing the following winter driving tips:

1. Put down the phone, food and drink. Driving distractions have proven to be a major cause of auto accidents and its especially important to concentrate on driving when you’re on snowy, icy roads around Minooka! You can eat, drink, respond to a call, text or Facebook notification after you get where you’re going and park. Pay attention to the road, keeping both hands on the steering wheel, your foot ready for braking and your head on a swivel paying attention to traffic around you, (because other driver’s may lose control and their vehicle might be in some unrecoverable spin, slide or skid).
2. Realize that you, nor your vehicle are invincible. Late model vehicles are great in so many ways, but because they are quieter and have less road feel than cars many of us grew up driving, unfortunately they tend to exaggerate your driving skills and the vehicle’s ability resulting in over confidence and a state of being “right on the edge” of control and out of control. The larger the vehicle, the more pronounced this false sense of security becomes. This is especially true with SUV’s, Pick Up Trucks and Mini Vans, which have more momentum and potential kinetic energy than their smaller passenger car siblings… That means once that threshold of control is lost, the larger vehicles will go out of control quicker, be more difficult to regain control, slide further and hit fixed objects or other vehicles with more force.
3. Slow down and give you and your vehicle time to react. The fact is, that when you are driving slower you will have more time to react to situations and your vehicle will have less momentum. This in and of itself will reduce the chance of you getting into an accident. This is especially important at night or early morning when its dark and the speed of your vehicle might be outrunning your headlights in snow, sleet, freezing rain and sometimes fog.
4. Signal in advance! When taking winter driving precautions, remember to let other drivers around you grasp what you’re doing by using your turn signals early, braking in advance and slowing down, etc. Remember that YOU might know what you’re doing, but the drivers around you don’t unless you let them know. For example, when driving in winter conditions it will take the car behind you several times the normal stopping distance it would normally take on dry pavement to slow down or stop, so before making your turn slow down, keep your brake pedal light depressed so the brake lights stay on and signal way in advance. That way the driver behind you has a better chance of reacting to what you’re doing.
5. Hope for the best, Plan for the worst. Focus on the path your vehicle could, (or will), take when it goes into a slide or skid. Its not a matter of “if”, but “when” this will occur, so stay alert and plan in advance the path your vehicle might take if it slides or skids. You want to avoid any fixed or moving objects if your car loses traction and starts sliding. When your vehicle is in a slide or skid, react as smoothly and calmly as possible. Ideally you want your vehicle to slow down as much as possible before impacting anything. The slower its going the less kinetic energy it has and the less likely you are to be injured. When you find yourself in a panic condition because the vehicle is out of control, immediately accept the fact that you very well might be in a crash in the next couple of seconds – try to calm down – don’t get freaked out – A crash may be inevitable once your tires lose their grip… If its going to happen, you may as well accept it and your goal should be damage control. With steady slow breaking and steering, (especially with late model vehicles that have ABS, Traction Control, Directional Stability, etc.), the chances are very good that you can avoid hitting poles and other vehicles if you concentrate on finding a safer location or exit strategy that you can use until your vehicle finally comes to rest.

Thank you for visiting our website and reading our blog. We hope these safe winter driving tips are useful.