December 1-7 is National Safe Driving Week and HRM Partners in Policing join the Canada Safety Council in encouraging motorists to prepare for winter driving.

Despite the current above season temperatures, it was just over a week ago that a major snow storm caught many motorists unprepared resulting in a high number of accidents.

Preparing your vehicle for winter driving is very important and so is adjusting your driving habits according to the weather conditions. Your visibility decreases in rain or snow and the required distance to stop a vehicle increases. Commutes will take longer and motorists need to allow extra time to get where they are going.

Weather is only one issue that can impact traffic at this time of year. The hustle and bustle of shopping and preparing for the upcoming holiday season leads to an increase in vehicle and pedestrian traffic.

Over the past two days, police in HRM responded to four vehicle/pedestrian crashes which is a reminder that everyone needs to work together to help keep our roads safe. Drivers should be on the lookout for pedestrians attempting to cross the street and pedestrians are encouraged to use marked crosswalks and pedestrian activated signals when they are available. Please do your part to enhance road safety during the next week and over the winter months.

Visit halifax.ca/police/OperationWinterWise or canadasafetycouncil.org/campaigns/weatherwise for winter driving tips.

Source: http://www.bedfordbeacon.com/national-safe-driving-week