How to Drive Safely in Fog

Mother Nature can change road conditions at the drop of a hat. Good driving habits, and also obtaining the knowledge to combat these conditions is what the whole ball of wax is about.

Driving in fog is one of the worst conditions the road has to offer. Chances of a bad accident are very high when fog is present on the roadway. Now your vision and judgment of distance is drastically limited. Erratic changes in traffic patterns can be done at a seconds notice; leaving a very limited distance for you to make an evasive maneuver in your vehicle should an incident happen.

Here are a few tips I've learned to help keep you safe in even the foggiest conditions. Your driving experience and motor vehicle skills will determine how long to drive in these conditions before a break is needed. Always keep in mind that when you start to get nervous pull over and take a break. Patience is always a must in these conditions.

Visibility

In bad driving conditions your eyes are the best tools you have. Your windshield wipers should be in good condition, and your windshield cleaning fluids should always be topped off when these conditions exist. Just as with driving in bad snow conditions, if you can't see you can't drive safely. So make sure that your visibility is in good shape when driving in foggy conditions.

Set the wipers on an intermittent setting which provides good visibility in the fog. Sometimes this might have to be reset to a higher or a lower position as the fog changes. Every few minutes use your windshield wipers along with the solvent to clean the windshield off after the visibility begins to lesson.

Be sure to adjust your defrosters (front and rear) to make sure the windshield provides as much visibility as possible. Usually a window lowered in the vehicle helps to increase circulation in the vehicle, and also helps to defrost the windshield.

With very thick fog on the highways be aware of the "fog line" on the roadway. This is the yellow line in the left lane of the roadway which marks the edge of the highway. This line is designed for highway conditions with poor visibility.

Lighting

Most vehicles are equipped with "auxiliary" or fog lights. These lights are meant to be used in fog, not every day driving. The high beam lights are definitely not recommended for use in the fog. Your visibility is lessoned with the use of these high beam lights.

Adjusting your eyes while you drive in and out of these fog banks takes some getting use to with the limited visibility. Always adjust your speed as you approach oncoming entrance or exit ramps; this is where most fog related accidents happen in these conditions.

Another idea which also helps while driving in foggy conditions is to drive in the left lane of travel. Most of the traffic usually operates in the right lane, and the left lane will provide a safer lane of travel than the right lane. This left lane of travel also puts you next to the fog line, and better visibility.

If nothing else move your vehicle over to the left lane of travel when approaching an exit or entrance ramp. Keep in mind that vehicles entering the highways have even worse visibility than you due to the approaching lights in their mirrors. Be very cautious when changing lanes in these conditions. Always give plenty of notice with your turn signals when a lane change is done.

Speed

The speed of a vehicle is very crucial when driving in fog. With limited visibility the speed of the vehicle needs to be slowed down drastically due to unsafe driving conditions. High speed rear-end collisions are very immanent when driving in foggy conditions.

Just as when driving in heavy traffic, the safest way to drive in foggy conditions is to reduce your speed, and distance yourself from other vehicles. Your reaction time is now increased in the fog with this extra following distance.

As with most adverse road conditions patience and experience is the best defenses of safety. Steady speeds and alert reaction time will help you to reach your destination in one piece. Keep you eyes focused for any approaching lights behind you, and ahead of you. If your eyes get tired, or you feel stressed pull over and take a break. Never to drive beyond your field of vision or your headlights, this is when an accident is most likely to happen.