Driving in Adverse Weather Conditions

Adverse weather conditions - Snow and Ice

In adverse weather conditions such as snow and ice you should always drive with extra care and attention

Throughout the U.K people ignore adverse weather conditions such as snow and ice at their peril.

In the areas that snow falls every year the local drivers are more used to dealing with these conditions. If you are from an area where snowfall is not an annual event then you should be more careful when you do encounter it.

With this page I hope to dispell a couple of myths as well as improve your knowledge on driving in adverse weather conditions.

Two commonly accepted myths about driving in snow

1) If you have a four wheel drive vehicle then you can drive as normal in snow.

This is not the case. Four wheel drive vehicles that have wider tyres with deeper treads will have more traction than the rest of us and putting power down through four wheels is certainly an advantage in snow but there is one detail that nothing can change. When driving on snow, the snow will get packed into the tyre treads just as it does with everyone elses. They will have more grip and traction than the other drivers but driving as normal will leave them wondering how to drive out of a ditch.

On ice a four wheel drive system makes even less distance. Ice reduces the amount of grip available massively. Be very careful on ice whether you have four wheel drive or only two.

2) I have an Anti-lock Braking System (A.B.S) so the computer will sort out the braking for me.

I am sorry but it won't. In dry or wet weather an A.B.S braking system is a great advantage. On snow or ice it is a nuisance until you get used to it. The systems are just not sensitive enough yet to act properly on ice. On a surface covered in snow you can expect an A.B.S system to lock up the wheels quite often if you have to brake hard. On ice you can expect the wheels to lock up nearly all of the time.

If you are fortunate enough to have an A.B.S braking system then you need to remember that the A.B.S does not come in until you are braking hard. On road surfaces that are covered in snow or ice it is important that you carry out good forward planning and brake gently well in advance.

Snowfall reduces the distance that you can see to be safe and therefore your speed should be reduced so that you can stop in the distance that you can see to be safe. Remember that snow compresses into the treads of your tyres and into ice on the road surface. Your tyres will offer hardly any grip on these surfaces at all.

It is recommended that your safe braking distance be increased to twenty seconds by the D.S.A. In practice this is not possible because if there were a twenty second gap between vehicles we would not all fit onto the roads. It is common practice to reduce your speed significantly. Driving at ten to fifteen miles per hour is better than being in an accident.

To help your tyres make the most of the available grip it is important that you avoid spinning them because all grip is lost immediately. To do this keep your engine revs low and change up gears slightly earlier than you normally would.

Your driving lights should be turned on of course. Do not be tempted to put your lights onto full beam. The snow acts as a mirror and your lights will dazzle.

Ice can be formed by compressing snow under tyres but this is not the only way. Surface water when subjected to freezing temperatures can form what is known as 'black ice'. The ice is colourless but it takes on the colour of the road underneath it.

Ice formed in this way can be very hard if not impossible to spot. If there has been a combination of rain and low temperatures then you should expect ice on the road. Look in particular in places where the sunlight does not come into contact with the road surface very often. Country roads often have bad spots for ice under high hedges. Tree lined roads can be just as bad. In built up areas be careful in areas that are always in shadow. The ice can form just as easily in these areas but it will take longer to melt.

Please Remember - In conditions with snow or ice you should always extend your braking distance accordingly.