Be extra careful at night

Driving at night adds extra hazards and is often more stressful. You must use all of your defensive driving skills when driving at night. More accidents occur at night than any other time of day. The reason is simple: It is much harder to see at night, and much harder to react quickly when you do see a hazard.To reduce the risk of having an accident when driving after dark, be sure to take the precautions below.

Defensive driving tips to use while driving at night:

• First of all, start with a clean windshield and clean rear and side windows to improve vision.
• Next, turn your lights on one-half hour before sunset—or earlier if it’s a dark day.
• Be a courteous as well as a safe driver by switching from high to low beams if there’s a car in front of you or one coming toward you. If a driver coming the other way isn’t so courteous, look briefly off to the right side of the road to avoid the blinding glare.
• If you have car trouble at night, pull completely off the road and use your emergency flashers. You should also have flares or fluorescent triangles in your vehicle that you can use so oncoming traffic is aware of your position.
• Driving at night can be dangerous, and many accidents occur after dark. Do you always take these precautions when driving at night?
• Switch from high to low beams to keep from blinding other drivers
• Ask others to describe the extra precautions they take when driving at night.

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