Every driver knows that they should frequently scan the roadway ahead of them, but what exactly should you be looking for? The obvious is that they should look for people traveling ahead of them, such as people changing lanes and slowing traffic. However, there are other road conditions that can change quickly and cause accidents. There’s a lot of trouble for drivers who feel that road or weather conditions impacted the case or that they outright caused their collision.
If you think that the road conditions caused or could cause a collision then it’s best to brush up on handling the most common conditions. There’s a ton of road conditions that Georgians face, but it’s also possible that they can prepare so that when they’re faced with these issues, they can handle them with confidence and ease.
Scan for Hazards
Defensive driving tactics advise drivers to check their mirrors every five seconds, and when they’re slowing down, and when changing lanes. Now, what do you do with all the other seconds? You look at the road immediately in front of you; you look further ahead to check for road hazards, and you look out in the off lanes to check for those possibly coming into your lane.
Scanning is the best way to assess, identify, and respond to road hazards and changing road conditions. This type of scanning can help you identify drivers who may be aggressive or careless and get out of the way of danger. But it can also help you identify other dangers such as horrific potholes, ice, and debris on the road.
How to Plan for Black Ice
Winter driving is especially dangerous when you know that there are poor weather conditions. Many seasoned Georgians know how to handle ice and snow. They know that they need proper tires or chains to give extra traction and that they need to keep their windows clear. However, black ice is the sneaky one.
Black ice will look exactly like the asphalt surface and causes even experienced drivers to get into serious accidents. Almost everyone knows how deadly black ice can be. But, if you know there’s a risk for black ice, you can take clear action to protect yourself.
How to know when black ice is likely on the road:
- Snow melting on the road but the air is still in freezing temperatures
- Rainfall freezing in puddles, so rain but icy conditions
- Fog is a good indicator that black ice is a possibility
Black ice needs the roadway temperatures to be below 32-degrees. However, it’s possible that the air temperature is not that low. Most black ice accidents happen shortly after a snowfall or during rain in extremely cold conditions. For many, these conditions seem strange at the time, but they don’t know that these are the signs that black ice is a high possibility.
There’s another factor for planning for black ice, positioning. Black ice tends to form in turns and on the shoulders of roads where there’s less tire traffic on the asphalt.
Driving in Heavy Rain or Flash Floods
The biggest risk of driving in heavy rain and flash floods is hydroplaning. The Georgia Driver’s Manual offers some insight into handling this road condition. They suggest reducing all speeds to 35 mph at most, and to keep your windshield wipers at an effective speed. Most hydroplaning happens at 35 mph or higher, and it often leads to immediate loss of control of the vehicle.
But when a crash happens involving heavy rains, it’s often attributed to driver error. The driver overcorrects or doesn’t respond appropriately, causing the crash. There’s also the factor of speed. The driver’s manual says to reduce speeds to safe levels and when drivers don’t do that, they’re often found responsible for the crash.
Atlanta Accident Attorneys Handle Road Condition Crashes
Our attorneys at the Weinstein Firm know that road conditions likely played a role in your crash, but that doesn’t mean there’s no fault in the claim. The state requires a fault determination and insurance companies will have to make the decisions. They’ll look through the evidence and often assign both parties some part of fault or a percentage. It is even possible for the victim to receive a small percentage of fault if they were slightly breaking any moving traffic violation.
To determine how to handle road condition factors in your case, contact the Weinstein Firm to start discussing your options. You can work with a skilled and experienced attorney to understand the role of the weather or road troubles in your claim.
