Road & Travel Magazine's Blog

Advice About Driving in the Dark

When you are behind the wheel of a car, your eyes are constantly on the move – looking at vehicles ahead and to the side, reading road traffic signs, checking your rear view mirrors, and shifting your gaze inside and outside your vehicle in order to check the speedometer, look at your global navigation system, or change a radio station.

During darkness these tasks can become even more difficult for some drivers.  On the new edition of Healthy VisionTM with Dr. Val Jones, two experts join Dr. Val to talk about what happens to your eyes in the dark and how you can take better care of your eyes – and your car  –  to improve your nighttime driving.

Nearly one of every three drivers on the road (32 percent) say they have difficulty seeing all or most of the time while driving in the dark, according to a nationwide survey* of 515 vision-corrected Americans aged 18 and over. More than one-fourth (26 percent) report that they have trouble seeing signs or exits; one-fifth (20 percent) acknowledge difficulty seeing animals or pedestrians, and more than one in five (22 percent) report problems judging distance while driving in the dark.
[Full Story]

Slippery When Wet - Falling Leaves Present Hazards

Brought to you by Car Care Council

Fall is the picture-perfect time of year when many drivers take to the road to view the autumn colors. The leaves are beautiful to see, but when wet or in piles on the roads, they present driving hazards unique to the season. The Car Care Council reminds drivers to prepare for fall driving conditions by having their vehicles’ tires, brakes and wipers checked before heading out on the road.

“Drivers should be aware that wet leaves on the road surface can make stopping difficult, and piles of leaves can obscure potholes, curbs and street markings,” said Rich White, executive director, Car Care Council. “Add to these hazards the fact that road conditions can change from ideal to miserable in a matter of minutes, and what you have is a potentially dangerous situation.” Full story.

7 Tips for a Safe Trip to Mexico

 
While the hot sun, blue waves and white sand make Mexico a tropical paradise, many Americans are scratching any plans for a south of the border getaway because of rising concerns over safety.  However, there are still safe ways to visit Mexico for a carefree vacation.

“You certainly shouldn’t throw caution to the wind, but Manzanillo and many other tourist destinations are still safe places to travel,” says Howard Alper, a property owner in Manzanillo, Mexico.  “The majority of violent crimes are isolated to a few border towns, a thousand miles away.  If the crime rate increased in Los Angeles, would you avoid visiting Chicago?”

To travel wisely, make sure to pack your common sense with the bathing suit and sunscreen and follow these tips for a safe yet relaxing vacation. [7 Tips Here]

Emergency Car Kit Must Haves

 

If you’ve never broken down in your car, consider yourself one of the lucky ones. But keep in mind luck has a tendency to run out, usually at the most inopportune times. Winter months and dark country roads seem to be when Lady Luck takes her vacation. Cold weather, road salt and mud, ice and slush can all cause a plethora of surprises, even if you take care of you car. Be prepared.

The first thing you need to understand and accept is that this can happen to you. Don’t allow yourself to fall into that false sense of security that it won’t because you take your car to the shop for all its maintenance check-ups right on schedule. That’s hogwash. Sure, as long as you keep the car on clean roads in mild weather you can be relatively confident you won’t get stuck. But that’s not reality for most Americans. We’re a nation of active people who go places and do things with our cars.

Before we get into the list of what to always keep in your trunk or back of your SUV, here are a few scenarios of what can go wrong that might cause you to get stuck and have to wait for help. First, there are the traditional challenges such as flat tires, engine overheating, running out of gas, or an electric failure. You may be able to fix or prevent some of these things yourself; others will require you to wait for help. All will have you stranded by the roadside for at least an hour.

Next are weather-related problems such as running off the road on slippery roads, an accident, windows too dirty to see through, mud sucked up into your engine, heavy rain, blizzard, tornado; weather that would force you off the road until it passes. Any one of these situations could detain you for hours.

Most of these things are preventable, however, impossible to predict. Think back into your own driving history or that of someone close to you. Has this happened to you or them? [Full Story]