A couple weeks ago, we had *very* heavy fog in the morning that continued well after sunrise. I always enjoy walking, driving or riding in the fog (not so much at night in unlighted areas). Since it was daylight and we were projected to have a warm, sunny day once the fog burned off, I decided to commute on two wheels. It wasn't until I was on the road that I realized just how hazardous this was. I prepared some thoughts for the "rider safety" topic at our CMT/ABATE meeting, and thought I'd share them here as well.
Daytime fog is uniquely hazardous for a number of reasons:
--Oncoming vehicles may not be using headlights. While it was technically daylight, about half the cars did not headlights on. That meant oncoming cars and cars on side streets/driveways were hard to see until you were very close to them. Make sure you are riding with as much light as possible to ensure you can be seen, even if you can’t see other vehicles.
--Vehicles in front of you may not be visible until you are very close to them. I had ridden for almost a mile before I became aware that there was a vehicle in front of me (that's how thick the fog was!), but like a lot of other drivers on the road, this driver was not using his/her headlights, and therefore did not have any tail lights. Encourage drivers to be sure they have tail lights on when driving in fog, whether they are using low-beam headlights or fog lights in front.
--Traffic lights are hard to see in heavy daytime fog. While lights will create a glow in nighttime fog, they are obscured by general brightness in daytime fog. Several times I found myself coming to an intersection and not being able to see if the light was green until I was almost in the intersection. Red lights were a little more effective, but generally, the only reason I knew was coming up on an intersection was because I recognized things along side the road! In heavy daytime fog, be especially careful to watch for indications that there in an intersection ahead...turn lanes, right turn signs and street name signs and brake lights of vehicles ahead all indicate there is an intersection ahead. Then proceed with caution, since the light may be nonvisible or malfunctioning
--Intersections are also dangerous since the vehicle behind you may not see you are stopped. As with other dangerous situations, position your motorcycle so that you have an escape path, remain in gear, and flash your brake light to differentiate yourself from the vehicle in front of you…alert the vehicle coming up behind you that there is less space between them and the vehicle in front of you than it may appear.
--Use other hazardous driving/riding skills: Proceed at a safe pace and allow enough space between you and the vehicle ahead of you. What is a safe pace and enough space? It's whatever is needed to allow you to safely stop if the vehicle in front of you stops, or if you realize you are coming upon an intersection or a road hazard (pot hole, etc.) Also be aware that the road will be slick, especially if it has not rained recently, and allow more time to stop and take turns a little more conservatively.
Topic: Riding in Daylight Fog (Read 4999 times)