Driving Tips > Safety Columns
Less daylight means driving gets tougher
Now that the days are shorter, more of us will find ourselves driving at dawn and dusk. These periods can make for some difficult driving, especially if you’re driving east in the morning or west in the late afternoon.
“The reason it’s particularly difficult is that you can be facing quite a bright horizon while both the sky above and the road below are dark,” says Lou Gervino, Manager of Driver Education at Manitoba Public Insurance. “That makes it difficult for your eyes to adjust and your headlights aren’t as effective, so it’s a time for caution.”
By law your headlights have to be on a half hour before sunset and a half hour after sunrise, but Lou says it’s a good idea to use them all the time because they make your vehicle easier for other drivers to see.
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To cope with the challenges of driving at dawn, dusk and in the dark, there are a number of things you can do:
- Drive more slowly
- Increase your following distance, and keep in mind that generally your ability to judge distance is diminished by darkness
- Scan continually for hazards
- Avoid glare inside the vehicle by adjusting dash lights
- Be sure to signal well in advance of turns by using your signal lights, stops by flashing your brake lights or passing by flashing your headlights
- Keep windows and lights clean
“One good rule of thumb is that you should adjust your night-time speed so you can stop within the range of your headlights,” says Lou. “And always remember that your headlights illuminate a fairly narrow beam ahead of you, so you have to be very alert to anything that might suddenly emerge from the surrounding darkness.”
For more information, watch The 60-Second Driver on CTV, or check out the following safety columns on this website:
- Night Driving in Safety Columns
- Help Others See You in Safety Columns
