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Charlotte McGhie 16th December 2021

Handling the Winter Roads as an HGV Driver

Winter can feel as though it lasts practically forever in the United Kingdom. Even after you’ve finished the festive season, you’ve still got months of snow and rain ahead. During this chilly period, all drivers find themselves facing extra hazards and concerns. However, for the HGV driver, the threats can be particularly significant.

Handling the winter roads as an HGV driver means learning how to manage everything from black ice to fog in a vehicle that’s much larger than your standard car.

While your HGV licensing course will help to prepare you for staying safe on the roads, there are a few extra steps you can take to stay on track.

Stay Tuned into the Weather

Keeping track of the weather is crucial when you’re an HGV driver. You should check the forecast each morning before you begin your drive, so you know exactly what you’re likely to be dealing with. It’s also worth using apps on your phone to examine whether any severe weather issues might be causing blocked or closed roads. This will help you to re-plan your route.

While there are plenty of different kinds of weather which can influence your driving experience in the winter, some issues are more significant than others. For instance, watch out for:

Fog: Areas of thin fog might be possible to navigate with high lights and a slow speed. However, as fog gets thicker, you may need to take a break and wait for visibility to improve.
Heavy rain: Make sure you know how dangerous heavy rain can be, particularly when it comes to causing vehicles to swerve, and harming visibility.
Bridges: Avoid bridges which haven’t been treated by gritters. Take care when approaching any elevated structure.
Black ice: Although it can be difficult to see, black ice can be very dangerous, causing your vehicle to slip and swerve.

Examine your Vehicle

Watching the weather is just the first step in preparing for your HGV journey. As standard, you should generally be performing checks on your HGV vehicle every so often anyway, to ensure everything is working as it should be. Your employer is also likely to have people come and inspect your vehicle from time to time too.

However, before you begin driving in the winter, it’s worth doing an extra check, examining as much of the different elements of your truck as you can. For instance, look at:

Your lights, and how well they’re working
Your windshield wipers, and how they’re faring with the snow
Fluid levels – are they topped up?
Your defrosters and heating elements
The battery power and charging system
Your fuel levels (too much is better than not enough)
Tire balance, wear, and pressure

If your employer has a checklist of important things to examine before each journey, double-check this before you get behind the wheel. Any concerns you have need to be risen with your boss.

Prepare for Everything

Okay, so preparing for everything can be difficult. The flexibility of your job as an HGV driver can mean you end up going on several different journeys throughout the winter months, and each can present new challenges. However, at the very least, you can make sure you’re prepared for as many hazards as you can think of.

Start by building an emergency kit. The exact contents of this could change depending on your situation, but it might include:

An ice scraper and a bottle of de-icer
A bag of sand or salt and shovel
Sunglasses for glare from the sun
Warm clothing and extra blankets
A flask full of a hot beverage (tea or coffee)
Plenty of extra food and water
Extra fuel, just in case you need to take an alternate route
A high-visibility jacket
Jumper leads
A flashlight

It’s also a good idea to keep a first aid kit in your HGV whenever you go out – regardless of whether it’s winter or not. You never know what you might encounter on a drive.

Adjust your Driving Practices

A good HGV driver knows that driving carefully is always important. However, during the winter months, it’s extra crucial to be cautious, as sharp and sudden movements can easily cause a loss of control. In the winter, make sure you’re slower, and more cautious with the way you use your vehicle. It’s better to get to the place you need to be behind schedule, than not at all.

Remember to:

Reduce the pace: Many accidents happen because drivers travel too fast on a slippery road. HGV drivers are already dealing with complex vehicles, so take it slow.
Give yourself space: Increasing the stopping distance between you and other vehicles will help you to react more rapidly to the vehicles around you. Allow as much as ten times the normal stopping distance if you have to.
Be consistent: Go easy on the breaks and keep a steady speed. Taking regular breaks so you can manage your fatigue is crucial too.

Always Put Safety First

Finally, this might seem like an obvious suggestion, but it’s one you can’t afford to overlook. After earning your HGV certification and getting a well-paying job, it’s tempting to drive to destinations as quickly and efficiently as you can (Within the confines of the law), to demonstrate how good of a hire you can be. However, this can be a dangerous process.

In the winter months, your focus shouldn’t be on being faster than your colleagues or getting to places ahead of schedule. Instead, concentrate on staying safe, and keeping the drivers around you safe too.

When the weather conditions are too severe, slow down and start looking for a safe place to stop. Be prepared to speak to your manager and let them know you’re running behind schedule if it’s too dangerous to keep driving.

Ready to Tackle Those Winter Roads?

Despite the sometimes-unpredictable roads in the UK, life as an HGV driver can be an extremely rewarding and interesting one. If you can learn what it takes to keep yourself safe and secure wherever you go in the winter months, you shouldn’t have a problem mastering your new job as a HGV driver.

Charlotte McGhie

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