Driving safely during a heatwave

Whilst temperatures across Europe continue to rise, due to the Azores high in the North Atlantic travelling North, creating this heat wave we're experiencing at the moment in the UK, we thought about what we need to do to keep ourselves safe whilst driving.  

Time to turn those blowers up to maximum speed and reduce the temperature to as low as appropriate.

Not only is it important to remain cool for our body temperature, but the heat will also make us feel fatigued so it's important for our concentration levels too.

Most modern cars are fitted with air conditioning now, however with some manufacturers a basic entry level trim, can mean just that so they don't have air conditioning.  If there's no air-conditioning, then you may feel more comfortable with the windows down allowing air circulation from outside to seep into the car. 

Did you know that the highway code rule 237 states that cars must be well ventilated?

We've been told a gazillion times to hydrate, but how many of us actually do it consistently and properly?

We can drink 8 gins or 8 pints in 3 hours with ease, but struggle to drink 2 litres in 24 hours!

Make sure that you always carry water in the car.  Not only is this necessary for our bodies, but we may find ourselves needing it for our cars during the drive, especially if we're on a road trip.

Water is needed for our windscreens, its amazing how many bugs and creatures almost aim for our clean windscreens as soon as you've cleaned it.  But of course more importantly most car engines are water cooled. 

Just like us, a car gets very hot, but as they're made out of tin, metal, leather and other components that retain heat and get hotter, stepping into a car that's been directly in the sunshine can be very uncomfortable.

Seek out the shade, park your car away from direct sunlight if possible, use a cover or windscreen shade.

This is not only great advice for lowering the temperature but also protects the car.

We once bought a car that we left in Spain, to use on our holidays.  It was parked in a compound near to the airport and the sun literally melted the dashboard.  

Paint dulls too, so if you want your lease car looking as good as possible then protect it from the sun!

I know that people find it hard to believe that we can take a 2 week vacation, sunning it up in Ibiza when it's over 40 degrees, we drink almost every day and their busses, taxi's and trains run as normal.  Well to answer simply, that is because their infrastructure is conditioned to cope with high temperatures and we're not.  In fact in Britain our infrastructure is more designed to cope with the cold and towards heating us.

How many busses in the UK have individual passenger air conditioning?  

Our rails are stress tested up to 27 degrees.

Therefore if you must travel, make sure that you plan ahead as you're likely to encounter disruption.  With many rail journeys cancelled or delayed you're likely to find more traffic on the roads, meaning your journey could take longer. 

It's always a good idea to work from home if you can and only travel if the journey is absolutely necessary.