Prioritizing Safety on a Spring Road Trip: 5 Easy Tips

Spring is a major travel season, especially because of spring break. That break gives people a much-needed change from cold, dreary, winter and a fun opportunity to do something new. But people going on spring road trips still need to plan ahead to make sure their trip is as safe as possible.

When you take precautions and prioritize your safety, you reduce your chances of causing or getting into an accident on the road. People who are distracted, fatigued, or lost make the roads more dangerous. If you or a loved one has been injured in a car accident, a Milwaukee car accident lawyer from Urban & Taylor can help. We will do everything we can to get you the compensation you need.

How Do You Stay Safe on Road Trips?

Before jumping in your car and heading off to the highway, you need to prepare for your spring road trip.

• Take Your Car to a Professional. Give your car a tune-up from a professional mechanic before the road trip. No one wants to get a flat tire or the low oil sign halfway through the trip. You’ll have peace of mind that your car is running at top performance or you can fix an issue if the mechanic finds one.
• Take Breaks. As you’re driving, you need to take breaks to stretch and walk around. This helps prevent fatigue and gets you moving every two hours or so. Try and fight the urge to do the trip all in one go, especially if you’re driving alone. If you’re driving with friends, switch drivers frequently. This way there’s no pressure to push through and keep driving even when someone gets tired.
• Use GPS. Set up a GPS or navigation system on your phone before you leave and mount it to your dashboard so it’s hand-free. Get an idea of your route and the areas you’re going to be driving. It’s also a good idea to come up with alternative routes in case your original way doesn’t work out.
• Stay Undistracted. Don’t check your phone while driving. Phones are one of the biggest distractions because it connects us to everything through social media. If you think you’re not going to be able to stay off your phone, put it in the glove compartment or a bag. But phones aren’t the only distraction. While it might be tempting to get food through a drive through and keep going, eating while driving is still distracted driving. It forces you to drive
• Check Weather. Spring can bring a mixture of weather to drive in. You might have sunny 60 degree days or you could get caught in a wintry mix. Knowing that spring could make the roads dangerous, check the weather ahead of the trip and when you stop and can check your phone again. If there’s inclement weather on the way and you don’t think you should drive in it, you’ve given yourself time to make other plans.

Your safety should always come first when you’re on the road. Taking the time to plan and think ahead of your trip will make traveling easier, safer, and you’ll be able to enjoy the trip more.