Night Driving Tips for Ensuring Safety In the Dark
The driving skill mostly relies on your sight, keen observation, and your ability to respond quickly to various road situations. However, the vision does not fully work during the nighttime the way it does in the day. So, night driving tips can help both rookie and veteran drivers.
Road Safety 101: Night Driving Tips
Driving in the dark is dangerous because almost 49% of all the fatal car accidents occur after the sun sets down. The rate is pretty high considering that only 15% of the vehicles hit the road during the period between 7 pm and 7 am.
How do you stay safe if you must go out with your car in the dark? Let’s find out how to drive at night:
#1. Be Sharp with Your Senses
You need to be alert and concentrate on the road only while driving in the dark because it dims our peripheral vision and affects the ability of depth perception. So, you should not, by any means, hit the road after drinking alcohol or taking medication that makes you feel drowsy.
#2. Avoid the Sleep Attacks
You cannot afford feeling sleepy when you are behind the driving wheel and it’s a long drive. Don’t start your journey just after partying all night or with prior sleep deprivation.
Coffee or other caffeinated drinks and taking occasional breaks can steer off the drowsiness. If you have company, share driving duties and make conversations to stay awake. If you are alone, listen to podcasts or a radio program to keep the mind busy.
SEE MORE:
#3. Align the Headlights
Uneven or misaligned headlights can create two problems – casting dim glow so you don’t see the road clearly or blinding the driver of an oncoming car. Both the scenarios are dangerous and you can avoid them by checking the headlight alignment before making a trip.
#4. Dim the Interior Lights
Concentration is the key when driving in a hostile condition. So, you should dim all the dashboard and instrument panel lights lest these become distracting and compromise your forward vision.
#5. Keep the Windshield Clean
Dirty windshield blocks the vision and streaks on it can cause glare at night. Both are dangerous and can lead to fatal accidents. What you should do is to keep it clean and not to touch the internal surface with your bare hands. If it appears murky and you don’t have anything to wipe out the dirt, polish the glass with newspaper to remove the sand, dirt, and oil residue. Always try to keep two or three microfiber towels for the cleaning purpose.
#6. Be Alert of the Wildlife Encounter
It’s one of the most important night driving tips for those who drive on country roads. Many accidents happen when drivers suddenly see an animal on the road and blindly steer the car in a direction to avoid the collision. Remember that animal’s eyes reflect the headlights of your car. So, watch out for a pair of tiny bright spots in the distance.
#7. Clearly Known The Road and Route
Before trip departing at night, with new roads, drivers should know clearly the route to avoid the wrong way. Since it is very limited visibility, it is very difficult to observe the signs. Most car models are equipped with navigation systems, driving directions should use this function to choose the appropriate direction of travelling.
Finding cheap used cars from reliable Japanese sellers? Click here<<
