Our View: Follow these steps to safe winter driving

With winter quickly approaching, ice and slippery streets come with. In a very cramped parking lot, winter driving can be dangerous, so follow these steps when Cedar Falls turns into a winter wonderland.

1. Slow Down
Quite a few accidents could be prevented by just slowing down, especially in winter. When there is snow and ice on the road, going fast is completely reckless and dangerous. Stomping on the brake is not an option. You’ll end up either crashing your vehicle into a snow bank or hitting another person’s car.

2. Brake slowly
When it comes to stopping in the winter, many times you will hit a patch of ice, causing drivers to stomp heavily on their brakes. This is a big mistake, as your vehicle will continue to slide across the ice. The easiest way to combat this is to tap on your brakes slowly as you approach a stop sign or stop light. Start braking a ways out from wherever you are stopping and carefully apply pressure more and more as you begin to slow down.

3. Turn into swerve
Inevitably you will end up getting into some kind of a swerve in your lifetime in Iowa. Whether it’s when you’re coming home from work and you slide turning a corner on a sidestreet, or turning onto a major road, it is very easy to slide. The only thing you can do when you are swerving is to turn into the swerve. If your tail-end is spinning counter-clockwise, turn the steering wheel counter-clockwise as well.

4. Weight
When attempting to get around in winter, especially in a pickup truck, weight in the back of your vehicle is very important. Most truck owners put generally four 75 pound sandbags in their beds. For car owners, only one sandbag is needed. The weight in the back will give you more traction by pushing your tires deeper into the snow.