Health & Fitness Finance Travel & Leisure Work & Business Where to Live Find Retirement Homes Relationships Coaching

Road Travel Safety Sense

Summary: Road safety depends on thinking, in advance about the risk factors you may encounter. Preparing your vehicle, understanding how to avoid hitting animals - especially after dark and being prepared with a good map and first aid supplies, results in a safer trip.

| by Kristi Nielsen

The face of travel is changing. Security at airports has made it necessary to be there two hours in advance and luggage restrictions have brought new meaning to the term ‘traveling light’ as more passengers than ever before choose, if at all possible, to travel with one piece of carry-on. However, it isn’t only air travel that has changed. The price of gasoline has altered the feasibility of touring the country in a 60 foot motor home with a compact car in tow; nevertheless millions of people will take to the road for a vacation at least once this year.

Gas prices may alter the distance people choose to travel, but  the bottom line is people love to travel and most are willing to pay the price. AAA (American Automobile Association) states that 75% of Americans will travel by car, truck or RV, while only 22% will travel by plane and 2% by bus or other form of transportation. While retirees have the option of traveling during non-peak seasons, they too like to travel during the summer, as that is the best weather for vacations. No matter where or when you travel, there are some safety preparations that can ensure your trip will be safe and enjoyable.

Plan your Route
Carefully planning your itinerary will avoid back tracking or driving out of your way to find accommodation. Your trip will be more memorable, and less expensive.

Gasoline Saving Tips
Routes that allow you to maintain a constant speed, and especially routes that bypass congested areas where stop-and-go traffic can drastically increase your fuel consumption, offer the biggest single gas saving opportunity. If you will be going through an area of heavy traffic congestion, plan to start early enough to be ahead of the rush and plan meal times to coincide with the worst congestion. It also reduces your stress if you are able to sit out the rush-hour in the comfort of a restaurant instead of in an idling car caught in traffic.

Avoid two-lane roads and plans with frequent stops. Every time you accelerate to pass a slower vehicle, your gas consumption spikes. Similarly if you stop frequently at every turn-out to snap a photo and have to re-enter the highway and get up to speed, your gas consumption increases.

Be Prepared
Emergency kits for your car should include both mechanical and medical safety items. For your car, carry jumper cables, basic hand tools, flares or reflective warning triangles. For you and your passengers, carry a first aid kit. Various first aid kits in different price ranges are available. Do not scrimp. If one kit is $29.00 and another that contains many more items is $49.00, is that $20.00 savings going to seem like much if anything goes wrong? Base the value on an assessment of the kit from the crisis point-of-view, not a this will do - we’ll never need it point-of-view. Ensure that you have a flash light with new batteries or better yet, a hand cranked flashlight. Always carry a charged cell phone and an adapter to recharge it.

Loading your Vehicle Do not overload your vehicle with luggage and equipment. Determine your car’s carrying capacity by checking either your owner’s manual or by checking the sticker attached to the side of the driver’s door. Do not block mirrors or windows with luggage. Avoid placing luggage on top of the vehicle. Luggage placed on the roof creates wind resistance which reduces gas mileage and also alters the centre of gravity of the vehicle, while cornering at high speed—increasing risk factors.

Vehicle Maintenance
Have your car inspected and maintained before hitting the road. Check fluid levels, coolant, and windshield washer fluid. Tire pressure should be checked before you leave and repeatedly on your trip. Have a technician check brakes, suspension, mechanical aspects of the car and the undercarriage. A well tuned car uses less gas.

A couple should expect to budget on average approximately $160 to $200 per day for food and lodging. Average lodging prices run at approximately $100 to $150 per night depending on the area where you are traveling in the US and Canada. Modest meal costs average $70 to $100 (for two adults) per day. Meal costs can escalate quickly if alcoholic beverages are added or if any upscale restaurants are included. Gasoline costs range from $1.36 to $1.85 per US gallon in the US and from $1.06 to $1.31 per liter in Canada. Of course these prices are fluctuating rapidly so by the time you read this these prices could be quite inaccurate. Realistically a cross section of vehicle consumption for cars shows approximately 24 miles per gallon to be average when city and highway driving are averaged into the stats. Add to that your entertainment budget, the cost of souvenirs and unexpected expenses. Some of the expenses you have at home for day-to-day living will also be incurred; however these are not really expenses attributed to the trip. The reality of paying utilities, rent, mortgages or strata fees during your absence from home has to be considered in your budget – especially for longer trips.

Caution: Avoid Road Kill
There is a risk that you may hit an animal if you are not vigilant, and the danger of hitting a dead animal on the road that has been killed by passing motorists is a double hazard.. Hitting a large animal is not unlike hitting another vehicle or an abutment. Passengers and/or drivers every year die as a result of accidents involving large animals. Many collisions with large animals result in significant damage to the vehicle and cost insurance companies millions. A mature moose weighs approximately 1500 pounds, not much less than a small car.

In certain provinces and states, where wildlife such as deer, moose, elk and antelope abound, December and January are the peak months for wildlife collisions. Animals are attracted to salt on the road left by road maintenance and sanding trucks. Deer are most often hit in October and November which is their mating season and they are on the move for winter migration. Moose are usually hit during June, July and August. The time of day to be most vigilant is dusk to dawn. Although animals are not necessarily more active at this time of day, the visibility and opportunity to spot them sooner is reduced and head lights can disorient the animal and cause it to spook – running right into your path. Moose are especially difficult to see in the dark because of their dark brown coats and their eyes do not reflect light like the eyes of a deer.

Animals such as moose, elk, deer and other animals that stand high on their legs, are the most dangerous to car occupants. These animals often roll onto the hood and smash through the windshield or crush the roof resulting in serious or fatal injury.

Speed is a factor. The faster you are traveling, the less time you have between the moment you see the animal and the point of impact—or time to avoid impact. Not only is it a risk factor for humans, nobody wants to injure, seriously maim or kill a wild animal. Be vigilant and use high beams whenever possible (as long as you are not meeting oncoming traffic). Ask passengers to help you scan the sides of the road for animals.

Return to Table of Contents Health Articles

Browse all Ads: Resource Directory

Article continued from previous column

Slow down immediately if you see an animal, even if you don’t think it is going to intercept your path. Animals are unpredictable and can move fast. Turn on your four-way flashers to warn other drivers.

Swerving at high speed can be as dangerous as hitting the animal, as you can lose control. Break firmly. Honk your horn intermittently and steer around the animal only when your speed is reduced significantly enough to be able to do so without risk. Remain aware of your position with respect to other cars on the road.

Some communities have tried reflectors that redirect light from the headlights of the traffic, to discourage animals from entering the roadway. Whistles can be attached to cars, however their effectiveness seems questionable for a couple of reasons. First, the difference between the noise of the traffic and the device may not be significant and/or the frequency of the device may not be audible to the animal and even if it is there is no guarantee the animal will run away from your path instead of into your path. In Banff National Park, (Alberta) – Parks Canada erected an eight-foot-high fence along the Trans Canada Highway. They also built 22 underpasses (usually 10 foot culverts) and two 164 foot wide overpasses to redirect the animals. This project has saved the lives of hundreds of Mountain Sheep, deer, moose and elk. Accidents were reduced by 96 percent.

Various high-tech systems have been developed and are being tested. Some of these are designed to warn the animals, others focus on drivers. Some of these may offer a false sense of security, as the results do not seem as conclusive as the results of the Parks Canada approach in Banff National Park. Systems to warn drivers use infra-red technology. Car manufacturers are also working on technology using infrared lighting with the hopes of not only protecting wildlife, but also protecting pedestrians.

In 2001 Ontario reported four fatalities, 490 (human) injuries and 10,632 damaged vehicles. Quebec reports more than 7,000 incidents annually involving deer, moose, caribou and black bears. Manitoba pays out more than $20 million in claims on approximately 8,000 to 8,500 incidents a year. Alberta and Saskatchewan, although lower population and smaller land masses, report more incidents than Ontario. There are more than 750,000 incidents in the US annually.

Be vigilant in low laying areas, near meadows, wetland areas, near water sources and in heavily wooded areas—natural habitat of wildlife. If you do hit an animal, do not approach the animal or try to remove it yourself. You may be putting yourself at additional risk of injury. You may even get hit by another motorist in the process. You need to report the incident to the police, and remain at the scene of the accident until the police arrive or at least until the police advise you otherwise. The most important message applies to driving in general: Drive defensively. Drive slower after dark to allow for limited vision. Driving during the day is always safer – on all accounts. Be careful when driving on unfamiliar roads – especially at night.

Drive safe. Don’t drink and drive. Maintain your distance. Enjoy your trip.