Driving too fast in poor weather conditions is the cause of the majority of crashes Wisconsin State Patrol responds to in the winter.
“The speed limit is for ideal conditions on highways,” said State Patrol Captain Bradley O’Cain. “Having any type of snow cover or potential freezing, that's obviously going to require drivers to lower that speed limit. That's going to help a lot right there.”
In addition to dropping your speeds, O’Cain said you should keep an increased distance away from the car in front of you.
That will give you plenty of time to stop if you need to and avoid heavy breaking which can make things worse in slick conditions.
“I like to think of it as ‘smooth and slow.’ First, the slow being the speed. Second is your movements very, very easy for like steering movements and your braking,” said O’Cain. “You don't want anything abrupt which could cause the vehicle to lose control.”
If you do get into a crash or slide off the highway, stay buckled in your car, and call 911. You don’t want to get out and start walking around.
If bad weather pops up while you’re driving, O’Cain recommends getting off at the next exit until it passes.
Don’t wait under a bridge or pull to the side of the road unless it’s an emergency.
O’Cain’s other big piece of advice, don’t think your safe just because you have four wheel drive.
“Yeah, they're able to have a lot more traction, but their braking distance is the same as every other vehicle,” said O’Cain. “Sometimes people get a little overconfident. So again, same thing with a four wheel drive vehicle is keeping that speed so that you can maintain control and increasing those following distances.”
O’Cain also recommends checking 511 Wisconsin before you head out.
It can give you real time updates on winter road conditions.
You should also keep an emergency kit in your car.
Items to consider keeping in your car:
- Blankets or sleeping bags
- Extra stocking caps, warm socks, gloves/mittens
- Flashlight with extra batteries
- First-aid kit
- Booster cables and windshield brush/scraper
- Drinking water and high-calorie, non-perishable food (trail mix, energy/protein bars)
- Sand or cat litter for traction
- Cell phone adapter/charger
“Those kinds of things that they're going to be finding useful in the event that you're waiting for a while for law enforcement and or a tow,” said O’Cain.
