Tips For Winter Driving in Kansas

Winter Driving Tips: Before Leaving the Driveway

Make sure that other motorists can see the vehicle. Brush off snow and remove ice from brake lights, signals, headlights and reflectors. Verify antifreeze levels, the amount of gasoline in the tank and also that the cell phone battery is fully charged.
Being stranded on a snow-covered deserted stretch of Kansas highway can be a life-threatening emergency. Having the car clearly visible makes rescue more likely while ensuring that the car is in good working order decreases the odds of being stranded.

How to Accelerate
Accelerate on snow - rather than ice - and gradually build up speed. Even if the car has snow tires or chains, the risk of spinning out of control during rapid acceleration is too great.

Driving Tips for Winter Travel on Black Ice
Black ice is a danger for Kansas travelers approaching off-ramps, shaded areas and bridges. Black ice is a very thin sheet of ice that forms over a wet-looking spot. While the driver believes to merely be approaching slush, she is actually nearing one of the most dangerous winter driving conditions in the Midwest. Slow down considerably when approaching likely areas of black ice.

How to Brake
Stopping a car on ice and in snow is a bit of a learned art. While Californians are used to merely slamming on the brakes mere inches before hitting the car in front of them on the freeway, winter driving tips for Kansas travel strongly discourage this kind of behavior.
Drivers with a rental car that features anti-lock brakes must step down on the brake pedal and keep the foot there; Californians traveling in their own cars (likely without anti-lock brakes) need to gently pump the pedal. Err in this instance, and the driver is at the mercy of locked tires and icy roads.