Patrick James

With the spate of bad weather Ireland is having, including Snow and Ice, many people are wondering what to do when driving in these adverse conditions.

Firstly (as advised by the AA), it should be said that if you know there’s likely to be ice on the roads and your journey isn’t important, stay at home. Choosing to drive on an icy road means that you’re choosing to take a ton or so of self propelled metal onto the public highway with no sure way of stopping or controlling it. It’s not always possible to avoid driving in icy conditions but if you can, you should.

If driving in icy or snowy conditions drivers should:

• Remember it takes longer to stop in icy conditions than on a dry road. Drive slowly and allow extra room between your vehicle and the vehicle in front
• Use the highest gear possible to avoid wheel spin
• Manoeuvre gently, avoid harsh braking and acceleration
• To brake on ice or snow without locking your wheels, get into a low gear earlier than normal, allow your speed to fall and use the brake pedal gently
• Remember that heavy snowfall and rain reduce visibility. Use dipped headlights and decrease speed
• Watch out for black ice, especially in sheltered areas on roads

In the event of a minor skid do the following:

• If you start to skid, release the brake pedal fully and stay off the brake
• Turn the steering wheel in the same direction as the skid and ease off the accelerator at the same time
• Avoid over correction with too much steering

If driving in stormy conditions drivers should:

• Watch out for falling/fallen debris on the road and vehicles veering across the road
• Control of a vehicle may be affected by strong cross winds. High sided vehicles and motorcyclists are particularly vulnerable to strong winds
• Allow extra distance between you and the vehicle in front (i.e. don’t tailgate), especially when driving behind heavy goods vehicles
• Allow extra space between you and vulnerable road users such as cyclists and motorcyclists
• Use dipped headlights at all times of poor visibility
• Check tyres to ensure minimum tread depth of 1.6mm and correct tyre pressureHidden dangers at zero degrees

Hidden dangers at zero degrees:

• Black ice. Normally, you can’t see black ice. However, if the pavement looks shiny and black instead of grey-white, be suspicious.
• Shaded areas.
• Bridges and overpasses. Ice tends to form on them before it does elsewhere.
• Intersections. Car exhaust and packed snow cause intersections to ice up quickly.

Turn off your cruise controlWhen the road is slippery, turn off your cruise control system. Snow, ice, slush or even rain can cause wheel-spin and loss of control.The only way to stop this wheel-spin and maintain control is to immediately reduce power. However, an activated cruise control system will continue to apply power, keeping the wheels spinning. By the time you disengage the cruise control, you may have lost control.

Vulnerable road users such as pedestrians, cyclists and motorcyclists are advised to be seen, wear bright clothing with reflective armbands, or a reflective belt or carry a torch.