Driving Home For Christmas... or anywhere else for that matter!
Hands up who has been trying to stretch themselves to reach higher up that sun visor in the car. Anyone hitting the breaks more because you're struggling to drive in the darker nights?
The winter is lovely and magical, but boy does it create some tricky lighting conditions for our driving. With the sunrise around 8.30 am and sunset around 3.30 pm it makes the morning commute and late afternoon driving a bit of a nightmare. The low-lying sun is directly pointed at your face and the reflections from the wet or frosty roads and pavements is terrible, causing blinding glare. Most of us are now driving home in the dark and that brings it's own set of challenges, making out changes in the road ahead and dealing with the dazzle of oncoming headlights. But you do not have to suffer through this each and every year, here are our Top 8 Tips for Improving Your Winter Driving.
This may be obvious, but you want to make sure your prescription is giving you the sharpest possible vision and also check on any eye conditions which may have started or progressed that may be having an effect on your vision. Have a test every year if you are over 60 and every 2 years if you are under 60.
2. USE POLARISED SUNGLASSES
A good, polarised filter on your sunglasses will cut out the horizontal glare which makes driving in sunny wintery conditions a pain. Even bright but rainy conditions can be much more comfortable. Just be aware they may block out heads up display or some electronic displays on your dashboard.
3. GET YOURSELF A PAIR OF NIGHT DRIVING LENSES
These are available as either single vision distance or a varifocal option and they are specifically designed to reduce glare from LED and Xenon headlights as well as enhance contrast, visual clarity and colour perception to make you more confident when driving in dark conditions.
4. WEAR YOUR GLASSES
Lots of people choose to wear glasses all of the time whereas others prefer to wear them for specific tasks, whatever your preference if you have a distance prescription that can improve your vision make sure you have them whenever you may be in the car. That might mean leaving a pair in your bag or in the glove box so you can't forget them!
5. ALWAYS GET A LENS COATING
We can't stress this enough. An anti-reflection coating will allow you to see better. All of our lenses are fully coated so you have the best vision, but we often see people coming in with no coating at all and it's not going to do your driving any favours. The best coating will also be easy to clean and give you a scratch guarantee.
7. MAKE SURE YOUR GLASSES FIT PROPERLY
Your glasses should be nice and snug and staying in one place. If you find them too tight or too loose, they can be more of a distraction. So, if it's been a while since we checked them over book in for an adjustment and we'll check all of the screws, joints, pads and make sure they are lovely and comfortable.
8. GET CLEANING
A good cleaning spray and a nice clean cloth are a must to keep those lenses sparkling. Most of the cloths can be machine washed for a renewed lease of life but if you need another one you can pop in anytime.