Drive Safely as it Gets Darker

One of the tells of the winter season is the darkness that happens earlier and lasts longer than it does in the summer. In the winter months, particularly December, the sunset in Arizona can start as early as 5:15pm and sunrise can occur as late as 7:30am. In Seattle, there’s even more darkness with sunrise at 8:00am and sunset beginning at 4:30pm. That’s around 16 hours of darkness! For many of us, that means driving to and from work in the dark.

At Team PPC, we want to make sure all of our team members are driving as safely as possible in these dark winter months. Here are some tips for all of us to follow while driving in the dark:

• Always make sure your headlights and taillights are in top working order
• Make sure your windshield and windows are clean for best visibility
• Be sure your windshield wipers are always in best working order for best visibility in winter weather
• Keep extra space between you and the car in front of you, so you have extra time to stop
• Use your high-beam headlights to see better in areas with low traffic and low-beam headlights in high traffic areas or when facing oncoming traffic
• Keep a flashlight in your trunk or glove box (with batteries) in case you face car trouble
• If you do have car trouble, pull as far off the road as possible and put on your hazard lights
• Don’t drive tired! Take breaks or stop if you feel you’re too tired to drive
• In case of fog, make sure your windshield and mirrors are always clean so your defroster can be maximized
• The most important tips for driving in fog are: to be patient, drive with extra caution, and use your low-beam lights

While these tips are tailored to dark driving, they are tips that can be followed at all times. Team PPC wants to every member of the team to get home safely every night, so make sure to be careful when driving any time!

Photo courtesy of Rudy Balasko.