The most important and basic advice is to slow down and keep more space to the car in front of you. How much space varies depending on the conditions, e.g. more if it is very icy, or if you’re going down hill you will need more space than if you’re going up the hill.

4WD is not 4Wstop! 4WD/AWD gives you extra traction going up the hill or getting going from a stop, but you don’t STOP / brake any faster with it than in a 2WD car. A 4WD or AWD car may get you out of the ditch faster but you get into the ditch just as fast as you do with a 2WD car.   Sudden moves are never a good idea when driving, but they’re especially costly in limited traction situations.

Look as far ahead as you can. That will help you anticipate situations where you need to slow down and you can take your time.  Keep both hands on the steering wheel. Your hands should be positioned at 3 and 9 o’clock.

Brake before the turn. It is safest to brake in a straight line when you can or as straight, with as little turn as possible.

Watch the surface ahead: shady spots are more likely to be icy. Snow is usually grippier than ice. Often there will be some sand ahead of the turn to help you brake.

While going slower is obviously advised, being the slowest car is not necessarily the best policy. If you’re slow to the point of being a road block you can get hit or cause problems for other cars. In traffic e.g. on 285 go smoothly, leave space, go slower and avoid having to stop and start on the uphill stretch. Smooth out the flow so it is less stop and go. If there’s only one lane, the uphill car has the right of way. If you can – let faster cars go by (it reduces your stress not to have someone on your bumper and if they’re too close they are a hazard to you). When you go down an icy hill, select a lower gear – you can do that with an automatic transmission as well. In “Drive” your car may shift into a faster gear and roll faster, just when you don’t need the car to speed up, and then you have to break and fight the car in order to slow down.

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