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British winters are not predictable. Winter can strike suddenly and severely. In extremely bad weather the best advice is to stay off the road. If you must drive, make sure you are prepared for the conditions
North East Lincolnshire Council has a Winter Maintenance Policy which sets out the priority for salting roads when there are severe weather conditions.
In winter it is even more important to check your vehicle is well maintained and serviced:
- keep your lights clean and the battery fully charged
- add anti-freeze to the radiator and additive to the windscreen washer bottles
- tyre grip is even more important in wintry weather so check tread depth and pressure
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Preparations
Before setting off on your journey during wintry weather conditions:
- ask yourself if your journey is absolutely essential
- check local and national weather forecasts
- listen to local and national radio for travel information
- tell someone what time you expect to arrive
- think about taking warm clothes, boots and a torch - it could be a long walk to a phone
- clear your windows and mirrors of snow and ice before you set off
- abandoned vehicles can cause problems for rescue vehicles and snowploughs. To ensure that the road is cleared as quickly as possible, you are advised to stay with your vehicle until help arrives
- if you have to leave your vehicle to get help make sure you can be seen by other vehicles
Drivers of winter maintenance vehicles take all possible precautions during salting and snowploughing operations to protect the safety of other road users.
Salting vehicles are extremely powerful and travel at about 35mph spreading salt across all lanes of motorways and trunk roads. Drivers should maintain a safe distance behind them - do not attempt to overtake.
You should take particular care to watch for irregular accumulations of snow caused by snowploughing operations. Do not be tempted to overtake snowploughs by squeezing into partially cleared lanes.
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Hail, heavy snow and rain reduce visibility
- use dipped headlights and reduce speed
When roads are icy or slushy
- drive slowly, allowing extra room to slow down and stop - it can take ten times longer to stop in icy conditions than on a dry road
- use the highest gear possible to avoid wheel spin
- manoeuvre gently, avoid harsh braking and acceleration
- to brake on ice and snow without locking your wheels get into a low gear earlier than normal, allow your speed to fall and use the brake pedal gently
- if you skid - ease off the accelerator but do not brake suddenly
- dazzle from winter sun can be dangerous - if it's too low for the visor it might be worth keeping a pair of sunglasses handy
- drive very slowly using dipped headlights
- use fog lights if visibility is seriously reduced, but remember to switch them off when visibility improves
- don't hang on to the tail lights of the vehicle in front - this gives you a false sense of security and means you may be driving too close
- don't speed up suddenly - even if it seems to be clearing you can suddenly find yourself back in thick fog
- drive slowly in first gear but keep the engine speed high by slipping the clutch - this will stop you from stalling
- avoid the deepest water which is usually near the kerb
- don't attempt to cross if the water seems too deep
- Remember - test your brakes when you are through the flood before you drive at normal speed
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