Five Winter Weather Driving Tips for the State of Washington

Washington is one of the states located in the Northwestern section of the United States and it commonly sees bad weather. In the winter, there are many different types of precipitation that can occur including sleet, snow and rain. These various weather conditions can make traveling a hassle and driving even more of a headache. If you live in the state of Washington then you should know that winter weather is very serious and driving in the winter weather is something you need to take precautions doing. If you live in Washington and would like to know more information on good winter weather driving tips, then you should read a few of these easy suggestions. These ideas are designed to help you travel the roads in the winter and to keep you and your family safe while driving in the winter weather in a Northwestern state like Washington.

One tip to driving in the winter weather in Washington is to have your car completely free of snow and ice before you get onto the roadways. Make sure you scrape your car off so that the ice and snow will not drift back as you drive and possibly cause a hazard to other drivers on the road. You also want to make sure your windshield wipers are free of ice and snow to prevent them from snapping off or breaking when you try to use them. Make sure all of your windows are free of snow and ice as well so that you can see properly. Also, make sure your windshield wiper tank under your hood is filled up with freeze-resistant fluid. This will ensure that when you go to clean your windows off you are getting a good liquid out and freeze-resistant is needed so that the liquid does not freeze on contact with your car. Making sure your car is clean from snow and ice before you get out into the winter weather in Washington will help decrease accidents and can help lessen drifting snow from your car as you drive. If you do not clean your car off and your windows off then you might become more likely to have an accident because your sight would be limited. Also, making sure your windshield wipers are in good working condition and you have freeze-resistant fluid in the tank will help cut down on accidents because you will be able to see properly and wash off your windows as needed.

Driving slowly once you get out in the winter weather in Washington is also a great way to help improve your winter weather driving skills. Just because you have a big truck or a four-by-four vehicle does not mean you need to run the roads like a wild person. Having the four-by-four is very nice to have and helps cut down on sliding in the winter weather but it will not keep you from sliding 100 percent. Always take precaution and do 10 miles under the speed limit or more if the roads are really that bad in Washington. Driving slowly in the snow and ice is precautions that every driver should use no matter what state you live in. People sometimes think they are cool if they are the one driving faster than everyone else in the winter weather and this can be a costly mistake. Drives as slow as you need to and make sure you take your time going on bridges and overpasses because these are the most dangerous areas in the winter weather. Driving slowly is something that might make you agitated but in the long run you are being smart. Driving slowly in the bad winter weather will help your tires keep traction to the roadways even when they are covered with ice and snow. You also need to be paying attention to other people driving and keep in mind that if you drive fast you could injure yourself as well as someone else. Driving slowly will help cut down on winter weather accidents and will help decrease your odds of spinning out or losing control of your car when you need to brake.

Braking slowly is also a great winter weather driving tip for anyone living in a Northwestern state like Washington. As with driving slowly, braking slowly will help cut down on the risk of an accident as well as the risk associated with losing control of your car or spinning out. When it is icy or snowy outside and you drive on that, your car tires are usually going down the road with a loose traction. Braking fast in the bad winter weather will just make your tires spin and lose all control and traction that your tires have which is why you spin out so fast. By hitting the brake pedal several times with small taps, you are helping your tires keep the limited traction that they have on the winter weather roads which lessens the possibility of an accident. Make sure you have enough time in between braking small taps and stop signs so that you do not put yourself in danger. When you see that a light is going to go red or that there is a stop sign ahead, be sure to give yourself enough distance to make the brake at a gradual level. If you do not brake gradually, then you are risking an accident, losing control of your car or steering or you might even wind up hitting a person walking.

When you are driving in the winter weather in Washington it is also important to give other people around you a safe driving distance. Make sure you are giving yourself at least four cars in between you and the person in front of you. It is important to maintain a safe distance from the vehicle in front of you because you do not know if they are going to lose control and spin out or hit their brakes suddenly. In the bad weather especially, keeping ample distance between you and the car in front of you will help lessen the chances of an accident. It is also important to keep at least a four car distance between you and the person in front of you due to the snow and ice coming from cars. When someone does not clean off their car properly, they are causing a hazard to people behind them because chunks of ice and snow are going to be flying off of their cars and can possibly interfere with your sight. Make sure you give the person in front of you room enough to where if snow or ice falls from their car, it will fall in front of you and not on your car. Also, keeping double the normal distance between you and the person in front of you will help the other driver feel more comfortable and not so rushed. When you ride a car too close, it can cause someone to think they need to speed up or rush because you are right on their tail. Make sure you leave enough room that the car in front of you feels safe and comfortable doing the speed limit they are doing. By taking the time to keep extra car space between you and the person in front of you, you are helping reduce the chances of a serious accident; fender-bender and can even help if someone loses control of their car.

In the bad winter weather in Washington, it is also important that you do not use the cruise-control option if your car has one. Cruise-control can be a very nice and relaxing way to get down the highway or roads where it is straight and a constant speed, but this is not safe for winter driving. When you are driving in the bad winter weather like in Washington, there are many slick spots and spots with black ice. When you get to an area of the road with black ice or ice in general, this will cause you to have to brake to deactivate the cruise-control. When you deactivate the cruise-control by hitting the brakes, this is a very easy way to get into an accident. Cruise-control also gives the driver a feeling of safety and comfort and it can make a driver less interested in the road and more likely to become distracted. When you have cruise-control on it pretty much does all of the work for you and all you have to do is steer, and in the winter this can cause a serious accident. The main reason to not use the cruise-control option in the winter though, is because of the braking needed to stop the cruise control. As stated previously, in the winter you need to brake gradually, and the sudden braking to stop the cruise-control can cause you to wreck, fishtail or even run off of the road.