Preparing for Winter as a Professional Truck Driver

It's coming faster than you might imagine. Winter is right around the corner. In the coming months, leaves will turn color, snow will fall on the mountains, and your job as a truck driver will gain a new level of difficulty. But you don't have to fret about winter if you prepare yourself now.

In reality, winter provides three main challenges for truckers: reduced visibility, reduced traction, and reduced traveling distances per day. Although little can be done about the last factor, you can solve many of the problems related to the first two challenges.

Reduced Visibility

As days become shorter and fog, rain, and snow set in, visibility can become scarce. Dark roads often cause many accidents because drivers fail to see what is ahead before they collide with it. To overcome this situation, you need to get better lighting on your vehicle.

There are two ways to accomplish this: on and off-road lights. On-road lights such as fog lights, headlights, and high beams can be improved for increased performance in rain, fog, snow, or just darkness.

Off-highway lights or moose lights can also provide better visibility in extreme low light situations. Although moose lights are prohibited on some roads, in the far north, these lights are nearly standard on heavy duty semi trucks. Many of these lights have yellow or blue lenses to reduce the reflection of light off snow or water.

Reduced Traction

The second greatest challenge for truckers in winter is reduced traction. How many times do you see trucks spun out on hills, jackknifed, or driven into the ditch each winter? If you haul in the US or Canada, you see these accidents every year.

One of the greatest methods to improve traction on snow and large quantities of ice is tire chains. If you want a better solution than traditional tire chains, you should invest in a set of tryggs. Originally from northern Europe, these chains have gained great popularity in colder climates because they grip the snow with rows or small metal studs. These studs can provide traction in situations where traditional tire chains would be relatively ineffective.