With the changing weather, Delhi-NCR is engulfed in fog every year during the months of December and January, which hampers the regular operations of various modes of transport. While cancellations and delays of flights and trains are a common occurrence, reports of accidents on the highways have also become a common occurrence. Recently, the convoy of Haryana Deputy Chief Minister Dushyant Singh Chautala and Home Minister Anil Vij collided due to dense fog. Meanwhile, another fog-related accident was reported in Noida in the morning when a bus rammed into a container killing one and injuring at least ten others.
Fog is a cloud-like formation near the earth’s surface and every year covers the northern part of India in states like Delhi, Haryana, Punjab, Uttar Pradesh. This is common in an open area in the early morning or evening and creates dangerous driving conditions. Fog reduces visibility, making it difficult to judge distances. While it is advised not to drive in foggy conditions, here are some tips to ensure safe driving while traveling in dense fog:
drive slow
Fog reduces visibility, making it difficult to see objects in front unless you are very close. As a general rule, it is advisable to reduce your speed, to avoid the chances of an accident. One should also avoid accumulating near other cars. In addition, fog can create the optical illusion of slow driving and it is important to check the speedometer from time to time.
Not only driving slowly but braking slowly is equally important and sudden braking is one of the major reasons why we hear about pile-up of vehicles during an accident. While the use of turn signals is highly recommended for safe driving, it is extremely important to turn on the signals for any turns and lane changes.
stop in low visibility
As mentioned earlier, foggy conditions are a common phenomenon during winters and the density of fog can vary from place to place and time to time. It is possible that one may go out of the house without fog and encounter dense fog at some distance. If visibility becomes very low, be sure to stop driving and pull off the road, park the vehicle in a safe place, away from vehicular traffic.
Once the vehicle has come to a stop, keep your hazard lights on, but turn off your headlights to increase your vehicle’s visibility. Do not drive until visibility improves.
use fog lights and low beam
A common myth is to turn on the headlights on high beam while driving in foggy weather. Fog reflects light back, also creating the illusion of dense fog conditions. The idea is to use the lights in such a way that they go as far as possible to increase visibility. One way to do this is to use the front and rear fog lights. They improve your visibility to other drivers because they use a warm color and are positioned to avoid the glare created by headlights.
Also, drive using low beam headlights and not high beam headlights. Higher rays are reflected from water droplets in fog, making it harder to see. Low beam will give better visibility than high beam.
drive on known roads
Safe driving in fog requires careful attention to your surroundings. If you cannot avoid driving in fog, one way to reduce your risk is to drive on roads that you travel regularly. It gives a better view of road conditions, dividers, diversions, among other things.
Also, reduce all distractions by turning off the radio or music system. You can also ask your passengers to stay calm and keep an eye out for obstacles and not use phones while driving. It’s easy to drift out of your lane when driving in fog.
keep distance
Be ready to stop fast and maintain distance to avoid any collision in such situation especially to avoid tailgating. Maintain a distance of several vehicles with the car in front of you. If there is a vehicle behind that is close to your car, pull over to let them pass.