First Staten Island Snowfall Brings Danger to Island Roads
Many Staten Island residents woke to a sprinkling of snow on the ground and on their cars this morning. Those in the more northern and western areas of the City received up to 4" of unexpected snowfall. Along with the pretty-looking snow comes the all-too frequent car accidents caused by cars and trucks not being able to stop in time or skiddingand losing control. Many drivers of SUV's or all-wheel drive cars seem to believe that they are able to drive without any change to their normal speed under snow conditions. Unfortunately, this is not true at all and the lesson is usually learned the hard way by SUV drivers.
All-wheel drive will definitely provide you with more traction under slippery conditions, allowing you to pull out from your driveway or start up from a red light but you still will have just 4 wheels on the ground to stop with. Despite all-wheel drive and traction control, its the 4 "contact patches", where the tires meet the road, that help you to stop. Having all-wheel drive does not mean that you have any better braking or steering ability than a similarly equipped 2-wheel drive car. Despite having the most technologically advanced car, nothing will stop your car from skidding if you hit a patch of black ice. In fact, as SUV drivers tend to drive faster, they are more commonly involved in rear-end collisions during snow and/or ice conditions.
As Staten Island seems to be dominated by hulking multi-passenger SUV's that seem to drive too fast when its not raining or snowing, the potential for accidents during the winter driving season is extreme. As we are unable to prevent SUV's from driving in bad weather, except in the most extreme snow-emergencies where the streets are closed, driver's need to change their behavior. Tailgating a slower moving car in a snow storm will only lead to an accident when the car in front slows down. Remember, you will not be abel t stop any quicker. Driving after a snow storm, especially when ice has had the opportunity to melt and re-freeze, may cause you to encounter black ice, which is nearly invisible but very dangerous. If you are driving too quickly, you may not be able to stop or lose control all together, endangering yourself and other drivers and pedestrians on the roads. We cant stop mother nature but we can all do our best to stop reckless winter driving. Lets slow down and enjoy the snow. Better yet, don't drive unless you absolutely have too.
