sandbags, / The Terrace Standard, Wednesday, November 22, 2006 - A3 ‘Safety gear stowed in vehicle By MARGARET SPEIRS WITH THE arrival of winter and the holiday season soon: who to follow, motorists travel, outside of town need to prepare themselves and their vehicles for potential emergencies. Set. Don Murray of the local highway patrol turned around and hedding back to | Prince George. when carly winter weather blasted the Burns Lake and. Vanderhoof iireas late last month. , Even though his police car was fitted with winter tires in September, he. be- lieved it was safer to return to Terrace the next day once _Toad maintenance crews had a'chance to clear the roads. “It was a combination of things. There was snow, but compact, icy. slippery sections,” he said about the road conditions. Murray advises drivers to slow down even if it means _ travelling at speeds below the posted fimit. “Although 100 km_ is posted, alot of times 70 or 80 might be a more reason- able speed,” he said. > Now that winter -has ar- . rived, Murray advises mo- torists to carry a duffel bag in the vehicle trunk contain- ing items helpful in an emer- gency. . The kit in the trunk of his police car contains'a flash- light, flares, an axe,. shovel, a spare, tire, first aid kid, blankets, fire extinguisher and a snow brush with a scraper on one end for cleaning his vehicle. Other items such as non- - perishable foods and hot beverages, are good ‘to have. on hand too, he said. Clean. frosty vehicle win- . dows before putting ‘the ve- ‘hicle in motion, he advises. . Visibility in winter con- ditions requires good win- ae bag . Mb j . he | Precision German-engineered down to the last detail. Superior performance and handling is standard on every vehicle. Not to mention: impressive fuel economy from our line-up of TDI diesel models. No matter what you drive i in life, there's a Volkswagen for everyone. Say “Das ist Good” and head down small ° their vehicle wipers. winter” ter-grade windshield wipers _and washer fluid plus an old , . rag or something, similar to clean slush and snow from, lights and bumpers. The -. blue windshield washer fluid is suitable for year-round use, he said. Some police officers put ‘clip-on’ wings” onto “The thought behind those. is if you're driving it puts more wind pressure on the wipers so they. can do what they do better,” Murray, adding that ‘these wiper add-ons are available at-local tire shops and auto- motive stores, When other vehicles approach on an undivided: road, squirt: some washer fluid onto the _ Windshield and turn on thes windshield wipers to help clean the snow and slush off». as they pass, Mud flaps can increase ~ visibility for other drivers and protect the vehicle from salt and sand that kicks up onto the undercarriage while ‘driving. Ensure the vehicle has four good winter tires in- stalled, he said. While ‘studded tires can improve traction, the studs .could possibly ‘come off at higher speeds and chains -aren’t meant to be used at speeds of more than about _ 50 km/h, said Murray. Drivers need to be aware of the énvironment as even a sunny ‘day with roads that appear to. be clear can still lead to slippery conditions on a bridge or a shady. curve on the road, said Murray. Tf the pavement is a light grey colour, chances are it’s ‘clear. If there’s a dark glossy sheen, there could be black ice ahead, he said. To test if the road is slip- pery, apply the brakes fight- ly, he suggests. fo your Valkswagen dealer today. © APR finance on selected 2008 models” said » semi-trailers or. SGT. DON MURRAY, the officer i in “ctlarge of the local highway patrol, carries 'sev- is essential for winter travel eral items, such as a brush to clean his vehicle, in the trunk of his police cruiser for. ‘winter emergencies. . 2 Icy roads also mean that increasing the distance when | following a vehicle is a good idea. oe -Drivers. can count on needing 10 times the normal stopping distance to avoid a collision, even.if they’re, be- - hiad the wheel of a 4x4, said «Murray. A good rule of thumb i is, to keep a car length behind the vehicle ahead for every 10 km/h of speed, so a dis- tance of about 10 car lengths is desirable when travelling 100 km/h on the’ highway, . he said. If a vehicle is following ° too closely, find.a'safe place” to pull over and let it pass. ° It’s not advisable to touch the brake to turn on the brake | lights as that might anger the following driver and lead to ~ road rage, he said. Before venturing out on. -the highways, check the DriveBC Web site at www. drivebc.ca for frequent up- MARGARET SPEIRS PHOTOS STUDDED winter tires can add an. extra sense of se- curity on the road. These tires on a local police vehicle aiso have grooves on the edges of the tread. - dates on road conditions:and . . ' cess to.a computer, call the the Environment Canada Web site at http://www. weatheroffice.ec.ge.ca. for the latest weather condi- tions. | | ’ If you don’t:have ac- DriveBC toll-free number to. check road conditions at 1- 800-550-4997. News In Brief College classes cancelled due to weather NORTHWEST Community College students: here enjoyed a cozy afternoon at home after the college administration cancelled classes for the snowy evening “of Nov. 16. After snow fell all day, college. administrators de- ; _ cided that road and weather conditions weren't safe for students to travel to evening classes. “We have students that come in from Kitimat and ‘the surrounding areas and we were concerned about their safety,” said college spokesperson Holly-Anne Burrows. _ After monitoring the road and weather advisories, both of which stated that the poor conditions would - continue throughout the day, college administration made its decision around lunchtime to cancel the eve- ning classes, she added. Zero Crash month | winners announced “TERRACE came close to topping the Zero Crash Month community results. The city posted a reduced claims rate of 25.4 per cent, which was good but not quite good enough to win. | “Powell River won with a 31 per cent reduction in the same category as Terrace ~ cities with a population of - 10,001 to 40,000. . ‘AS a reward for its reduction, Powell River will re- - ceive a road safety grant of $25, 000. ” “Pd like to see Terrace win of course. I'd like to see” no crosses then [local highway patrol Sgt.) Don Murray -and-I wouldn’ t have jobs,”. said Dave Dickson, ICBC .. ~ regional manager loss prevention north central region - of B.C., referring to his wish to have no more motorists die on northern roads, which often lead to people erect- . ing memorial crosses for their lost loved ones. “It’s all about attitudes,” he added. “Crashes are all totally preventable.” - Northern B.C. winners included the Village of ‘Queen Charlotte, which will receive a grant of $10,000 for its 49 per cent crash reduction in the category of commu- — “nities with a population of 1,501 to 5,000 and New Ai- yansh, which is due to receive a‘$2,500 grant for its - - 100 per cent crash reduction rate. The town of less than 1,500 tied with Silverton, which is near Nelson: | .. Individual prize winners included Willi Schmidt of : Terrace, who won a seven-day trip for two to Cancun, Mexico. , More than 54, 000 British Columbians made a per: : : sonal pledge to road safety in October while 172 com- ‘munities signed up for the Zero Crash Month commu-- nity challenge and 94 businesses joined the corporate challenge. Zero Crash Month is. a joint challenge issued. by: ICBC, the provincial, government and local police.in |. 7 - October to raise awareness about the impact of crashes on people and communities. a " : us Columbia Autohaus Ltd. 4109 Substation Avenue, Terrace (250) 635-5717 Mach Schnell Visit vw.ca or call 1-800 DRIVE VW for more information. availab! Cost of borrawing is $1120 for a total obligation of $27,260. PPSA, license, insurance, registration, dealer charges, options and applicable taxes are extra. Dealer may sell for less, Offers end November 30th, 2006. 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