As Storm Goretti wreaks havoc across the UK, Brits have been warned about using one particular button in their car while driving in treacherous conditions.
The Met Office has already slapped a rare red wind warning on certain regions and many areas are still battling freezing conditions. So cluing up on safe driving practices when roads turn into skating rinks is crucial, reports Wales Online.
That's why one driving school site is urging motorists to ditch the cruise control. Adams Driver Trainer cautioned on their site: "While cruise control is convenient in normal conditions, it can be dangerous on icy roads. It reduces your ability to react quickly to changing road conditions."
Cruise control—a modern motoring tool letting drivers hold a steady speed without constantly holding the accelerator—might seem useful, but when ice enters the equation, keeping it switched off means you can make split-second adjustments if things go sideways (literally).
The warning isn't isolated either. Speaking to The Globe and Mail, Ron Wilson from the Alberta Motor Association flagged up how cruise control becomes a liability when tyres lose their grip.
He explained: "Any time of the year, you should never use cruise control unless you can drive at a steady speed. So not in heavy traffic or if you're driving on winding roads.
"And you never want to use it on wet or icy roads. The car can actually surge forward and put the vehicle into a skid. So by the time you catch that, it could be too late."
The advice from Ron has been backed up by experts at Rooster Car Insurance, who took to social media to share their wisdom on what to do when your motor starts to slide, according to the Express.
Their advice was: "When you first start to skid, ease of the gas and do not brake hard."
The rationale behind not slamming on the brakes is that doing so could cause the wheels to lock, reducing your control over the car and effectively transforming it into a two-tonne sled.
Warnings about driving in icy conditions have been issued as the Met Office has put out yellow and amber alerts for snow in parts of Wales.
In a statement regarding the warning, they said: "Rain, associated with Storm Goretti, will spread northeastwards across the warning area through Thursday afternoon and evening, transitioning to snow fairly widely overnight and into Friday.
"Snow initially will begin to accumulate across hills in Wales and then increasingly to lower levels overnight. Whilst not all areas may see accumulating snow, accumulations of 5-10 cm are likely quite widely, with scope for 15-25 cm in places, especially on some hills above 200 metres elevation."
