With the days becoming shorter and the nights getting longer, we find ourselves more often driving at night.
Although fewer people drive at night, accidents are three times more likely to occur due to darkness limiting our normal range of vision.
Our depth perception, peripheral vision and field of vision are all affected by night driving.
Tips to help you drive safely at night:
- Install good quality, clean headlights that are properly aligned.
- Clean windshields, backup taillights, side and rear-view mirrors.
- Drive a safe speed and increase the distance between you and the vehicle in front of you.
- Use your 'brights' when safe to do so, but be aware and courteous of oncoming and cross traffic.
- Don’t become distracted by bright neon signs and building lights.
- Turn down the brightness of your dashboard to help focus on the road.
- Make it a habit to scan the roadway and shoulders for pedestrians, vehicles and wildlife.
- Drive alert and never while fatigued.
- Travel on routes that you are familiar with.
- With our vision limited while driving at night, it’s important to have our vehicle’s brakes in good working order. It’s a good idea to schedule your car for brake safety check.
Driving at night poses special challenges, but with a little extra caution it’s easy to do so safely. If you have any tips or suggestions, please leave a comment below and please share this article with young or inexperienced drivers.