5 Fall Driving Safety Tips for New Truck Drivers

If you’re a fairly new truck driver, you probably aren’t used to handling your rig in fall weather conditions. It would help if you exercised caution for fall-related hazards such as increased road obstacles to rain and snow while driving your truck. Follow the five tricks below to stay safe amidst the complexities that fall brings to drivers.

1. Prepare Your Truck

Days are shorter during the fall, so you will drive more at night, especially if you are a long-distance driver. You must prepare your truck to handle the night drives, ice, fog, and leafy pavement.

Preparation tips to ensure your truck is up to task include:

• Check that all your lights are functional and in good shape before every trip.
• Check your windshield wiper for any signs of damage and perform repairs when needed.
• Adjust the tire pressure and ensure enough tread to steer better and brake faster.

With these truck maintenance tips, you prevent avoidable accidents and collisions.

2. Watch Out for Slippery Leaves

Fall is usually associated with a lot of leaves on the road. Wet leaves make the road slippery and can cause tires to slip. Dry leaves reduce friction between truck tires and the road. Finally, leaves, whether dry or wet, can conceal other hazards, such as potholes and ice.

Some safety tips when you see leaves on the road are:

• Do not drive over leaves; if you must, do so slowly and with extra care.
• Do not brake hard or swerve abruptly because your tires may slide uncontrollably.
• Ensure enough stopping distance between your truck and other vehicles to prevent a rear-end collision.

Leaves may seem like a small hazard, but they have severe effects if you ignore essential safety measures.

3. Look Out for Wildlife

Some significant threat to your safety during fall is the increased activity of deer. Fall, especially November, is the mating season for deer. Therefore, you can encounter deer on the road. A few tips to keep safe from deer include:

• Do not drive beyond the reach of your headlights.
• Watch out for deer eye shine caused by your headlights.
• Pay attention to the road signs, which are often placed in places with a high likelihood of deer.
• Do not swerve when you see a deer in front of you because you may go off the road or jackknife your rig.

The deer are especially active during dawn and dusk, so besides the above tips, pay attention to animal movement.

4. Be Mindful of Fog, Frost, and Black Ice

Fog and frost are common during fall, and the two reduce driver visibility. So, you may be unable to spot other drivers or road hazards until they are very close to you. Black ice, too, is more common when temperatures are low, like early morning and night. But black ice is more difficult to spot, so stay alert and keep your eyes on the road.

Safety tips for fog, frost, and black ice include:

• Turn on your lights to increase your truck's visibility to other drivers.
• Avoid high beams because the reflection reduces your truck's visibility to other road users.
• Straighten your steering wheel once you see black ice, and reduce your speed as your drive over.

Enhanced visibility is a two-way pro for you and other road users, so ensure your truck is always visible.

5. Gear Up for Glare

Changes in daylight times cause you to drive more with the sun lower in the sky. So, you get glare that makes visibility harder, especially in the morning and early evening. As a result, you may not see pedestrians, vehicles, and other road hazards like ice and potholes.

You can minimize the effects of the sun's glare on your visibility by using sunglasses and keeping your sun visor down. In addition, you can clean the inner and outer sides of your windscreen. The sun can also affect your skin, so keep sunscreen in your truck.

Fall can be a bit more difficult season to drive, but you can stay safe with the tips above. Commercial Trucking School is only a call away if you still want to learn more about truck driving. Contact us today for more information.