At Halloween, the scariest things are not the 3-foot witches and monsters walking the streets. Rather, the very real additional dangers that this time of year can present. Although fun, Halloween introduces a number of health hazards that we need to be mindful of in order to avoid an accident. And many of these relate to driving. To make sure that Halloween stays as fun and exciting for you as it should be this year, read on and consider these important Halloween driving safety tips.
Top Driving Safety Tips for Halloween
Watch out for the kids
The first and most important safety tip for Halloween is to look out for all the kids. Particularly in residential areas, you are likely to find that there are a lot more young children and families roaming the streets. The worst part? Many of them will be dressed in black! This can be a very serious driving hazard at this time of year, so it’s important to drive extra slowly and to keep an eye out for them.
Halloween is great fun and unfortunately, this can also lead some people to act a little silly. This might include kids pushing each other into the road, running out into the road without looking, etc. Once again, this makes it extra important that you keep your eyes open and drive with some extra caution.
Another tip? Make sure to slow down long before you reach crossings – as this is where a lot of such accidents can happen.
Similarly, you should pull out of your drive very slowly. You might find that big groups of kids suddenly appear behind you either passing your house or running up your drive.
Leave Extra Time
There will be a lot more traffic on the roads in general during Halloween, and this is likely to make driving slow-going. Just as you are driving slowly and carefully at this time, you’ll probably find a lot of other people are too.
So, what does that mean? It means that you might get stuck in traffic, it means you might have to wait while someone drops their kids off, and it means you might have to be patient while a group of kids run around the road in front of you.
The takehome? Don’t expect to get places quickly: set off early, give yourself plenty of time, and drive slowly. Accidents tend to happen when we’re in a hurry, when we’re impatient, or when we’re frustrated. Taking over stopped vehicles, or trying to squeeze through a red light are the kinds of behaviors that will lead to accidents.
Park Safely
Unfortunately, some people just don’t enter into the correct spirit of Halloween and see this instead as an opportunity to cause serious harm and damage. A combination of the atmosphere, the fact that they can get away with wearing masks, and probably some overexcitement means that older kids might find it a funny “trick” to genuinely scare people, or even cause property damage. This can often result in cars being egged, or potentially being keyed. And it is for this reason, that you should be extra safe when parking your vehicle. Make sure that it is away from busy roads wherever possible.
This also means it’s important to be safe while driving. Make sure to lock your doors when you are stuck in traffic. Also, avoid rough neighborhoods, and generally make sure that you are cautious and safe wherever you go.
If you follow these tips, then you can enjoy Halloween with no added risks when getting in your car. Go out and have fun!
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