Driving In Tunnels? Stay Safe!

When you are driving through a tunnel it can potentially become a hazard, added danger comes when you haven’t travelled through the particular tunnel before as it is unknown to you. There are a number of hazards you may have to tackle on your travels so here are some tips to keep you and your passengers safe on any journey that may be riddled with tunnels.

Before you enter a tunnel please make sure that you have enough fuel in your tank, tunnels can be deceivingly long and it is a regular occurrence that people run out of fuel half way through a tunnel which of course can be a danger to you and every other traveller. Not to mention you will have no signal on your phone and will have to leave your vehicle, not something you want.

Make sure that you remove your sunglasses and tune into the radio, many of the larger tunnels have their own radio channel which will alert you of all the traffic information and potential hazards within the tunnel. The sunglasses part is because your vision is pretty limited inside a tunnel which are often darkly lit meaning sunglasses further impair your vision.

Don’t put on full beam headlights as it will daze other drivers but make sure that you have dipped headlights always switched on. Also make sure that you leave a sufficient gap between your vehicle and the one in front and behind to ensure that you are given adequate stopping distance, and make sure you stick to the speed limit. This is obviously for travelling on the road at any time but specifically so in tunnels as breaking down in a tunnel is more severe.

If you do happen to break down make sure that you have a reflective jacket with you for extra protection, turn off your vehicle with the hazards on and leave the key in the ignition. Walk to a safe place and find the nearest emergency phone and contact them straight away to alert them of the issue.