With tomorrow seeing the official start of winter, the Freight Transport Association is supporting Highways England’s winter road safety campaign which this year highlights the dangers of driving in the rain and encourages drivers to slow down. 

At this time of year attention is often concentrated on the disruption caused by snow and ice, whereas in fact driving in the rain, with wet roads and reduced visibility, poses a greater danger.  Around 85% of road traffic accidents in bad weather take place in the rain and almost 100 times more road deaths occur in rain compared with snow and ice, and the dangers are often underestimated by drivers.

However, snow and ice and other types of severe weather also pose problems for transport operators who are particularly busy at this time of year delivering the goods everyone needs. 

Malcolm Bingham, FTA’s Head of Road Network Policy, said: “It’s important to be prepared for all types of weather at this time of year, and FTA has a suite of products and services designed to help and advise road users.  We work closely with the national highway authorities and the Met Office to communicate vital weather information and provide a traffic information service which operates 24 hours a day, seven days a week, to ensure that vital amber and red winter weather alerts are passed on to members as they are issued.”

The FTA Shop has a selection of products to help keep vehicles on the road, enabling them to get on with the task of delivering essential supplies, including windscreen kits, emergency kits, battery boosters and chargers, clothing, shovels, de-icing sprays andscrapers, torches and rock salt depot kits.  There is also a range of AutoSocks for cars, vans, trucks and buses, together with a variety of tyre depth and pressure gauges.  Full details can be found on the Shop website at http://www.shop.fta.co.uk or telephone 03717 11 11 11. 

Freight Transport Association

About the Author: John Loughran