While driving on icy or snowy roads is never pleasant, what can make this situation even scarier is if these are the road conditions when you’re on busy city streets. Luckily, with the right knowledge and attitude when you’re behind the wheel, you can increase your chances of staying safe and avoid many potential car accident situations.
To help you see how this can be done, here are three tips for driving on icy city streets.
Press Your Pedals Gingerly
Some of the hardest things to do when you’re driving on snowy or icy roads are to get your car to start moving and get your car to stop moving. Because the traction on the roads will be questionable, it’s important that you give yourself ample time to make either of these maneuvers as well as knowing the right ways to initiate them
According to AAA Exchange, the best way to ensure that you’re able to start moving when you want to and stop moving when you need to is to be very gentle with your gas and brake pedals. The more gingerly you’re able to accelerate and decelerate, the greater the chances are that you’ll be able to remain in control of your vehicle. If you try to do either of these things too quickly, you could easily lose control of your car and be at the mercy of whatever your vehicle and the weather conditions choose to throw at you.
Learn To Control Skids
Sometimes, no matter how careful you’re trying to be while driving on an icy road, you might lose control for a few moments and feel your vehicle go into a skid. Usually, you’ll either start skidding with your front wheels or your back wheels. And depending on what type of skid you’re in, the actions you should take next will vary.
Edmunds.com shares that if your front wheels start skidding, the best thing to do is let off the accelerator and try not to turn the wheel too much. Hopefully this will allow you to slow down enough to get control before you go in a direction that’s unsafe for you and your vehicle. If your back wheels start skidding, you’ll likely have a lot less control, so just do your best to safely slow down.
Make Sure Your Car Is Well Maintained
Driving a well-maintained car during the winter months is going to be one of the best ways to ensure that you stay safe when out on the icy streets.
According to SafeMotorist.com, not only does this mean that you should have tires with good traction, working brakes, and great windshield wipers, but you should also have your car stocked with things you’ll need in the event of an accident or getting stuck.
If you anticipate driving on icy city streets over the next few months, consider using the tips mentioned above to help you stay as safe as possible out there.
