Be Aware of Summertime Driving Challenges

You made it through the winter and the poor road conditions that accompanied it; but this is no time to let your guard down. Millions of Americans, including an increase in young drivers, take advantage of the warm weather to head out on the road for recreation and travel. Unfortunately, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), this makes July 4 the most dangerous day and August the most hazardous month of the year for severe driving-related injuries and deaths.

Warn your drivers to be extra cautious this time of year. Increased congestion makes it more critical than ever to restrict cell phone use and other forms of distracted driving. It is also especially important during heavy travel periods for drivers to be fully rested to avoid the dangers of fatigued driving. Summertime driving requires complete focus.

Many motorists on the road throughout the summer are not accustomed to high speeds of travel and may not demonstrate safe driving skills. Non-professional drivers who are not used to long trips may drive into the early morning hours to reach their destination, increasing their risk of driver fatigue. Professional drivers must be aware of the potential mistakes these drivers could make and always maintain enough distance from other vehicles to avoid any collisions that result.

Tourists who are traveling unfamiliar routes have a tendency to make abrupt course corrections. Advise your drivers to be on the lookout for this behavior and yield to confused drivers. Pedestrians in tourist and resort areas are also unpredictable and more prone to step unexpectedly into the roadway. In addition, more children play outside. Drivers must keep their eyes on the road to spot and avoid children, bike riders, skateboarders or distracted pedestrians who may suddenly enter their lane of travel.

Instruct drivers to keep the inside of their windows clean and streak-free. The film that develops on inside window glass is capable of defusing incoming light, spreading it across the entire window and making it difficult to see through. Approaching headlights in the evening hours can cause the same effect. Battling excessive window glare for an extended period of time could make your drivers drowsy, leading to fatigue-related driving errors.

Please refer to the Resource Library for a video training program on warm weather driving.

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