Don't forget winter road safety on your holiday travels
The holidays are here and so is the travel dilemma. With a string of Alert Days leading up to Christmas due to rain and brutal cold, WJZ's Kristy Breslin has some travel tips.
Nearly 113 million people are going to be hitting the roads over the holidays, according to new research by autoinsurance.com. The research also states that 1,500 deadly crashes occur each year during Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Year's Eve.
If you don't have to travel during the peak of the bad weather, either delay your travels or stay home. If you do have to travel, please leave early, and take it extra slow.
The travel will really pick up as winter break begins Friday for thousands of students in the Baltimore area.
A couple of tips from Kristy and MDOT:
- The speed limit is for ideal travel conditions so in tricky situations like this one you want to go 10 to 15 miles per hour slower
- Keep 3 to 4 car lengths in between you and the car in front of you. Bridges, ramps, and overpasses freeze first so which can make travel particularly dangerous
- Increase following distance between your vehicle and others on the road, especially snowplows.
- Pack a winter driving survival kit – include a shovel, blanket, water, jumper cables, flares, snacks and a flashlight.
- Check your car's antifreeze, oil, battery, defroster, heater, wipers and washer fluid level
Happy Holidays, stay safe and stay with WJZ for all your news, weather and traffic updates!
