Traveling on the highways or freeways can be a great way to get some experience on the road and see a big part of the country or area you’re touring. However, being on the road also comes with some safety hazards that you want to be aware of. One of the biggest safety hazards, both literally and figuratively, come in the form of Semi Trucks. So to help you avoid getting into an accident with a semi truck, here are three tips for safely driving around semi trucks while you’re road tripping.

Know Their Blind Spots

While all vehicles have blind spots, semi trucks have more blind spots than most. Rather than just having two small blind sports like most cars, semi trucks have quite a few larger blind spots. According to the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration, the biggest blind spots for semi trucks are 20 feet in front of them, 30 feet behind them, about two lanes to their right, and about one lane to their back left. Knowing this, it’s crucial that you stay out of these areas if you want to be able to be seen by the semi truck driver. If you must go through these area, make sure you signal and that you move out of those areas quickly.

Keep A Consistent Speed

The bigger the vehicle is, the harder it is for it to get up to speed or to slow down. This concept is especially true for semi trucks, who often have a lot of cargo with them to help make them even heavier loads. Because of this, Patrick Allan, a contributor to LifeHacker.com, recommends that you as a driver try to keep your speed as consistent as possible when traveling in front of semi trucks. If you slam on your brakes when you’re right in front of a semi truck, it may not be able to stop in time to not hit you, depending on how much room is between you two. So to keep yourself from getting rear-ended by a semi truck, try to keep your speed consistent.

Be Careful In Windy Conditions

If it’s a windy day when you’re driving, you’re going to want to be extra careful when moving around semi trucks. According to Drive-Safely.net, a semi truck’s load can become like a sail when it’s windy. This can cause it to drift in and out of lanes more than it normally would. With this in mind, be sure you give semi trucks the space they need to safely maneuver themselves when there are windy conditions.

If you have a road trip coming up, consider using the tips mentioned above to help you drive safely around these big semi trucks.

The post 3 Tips For Being Safe Around Semi Trucks When Road Tripping appeared first on Travel Experta, Expat Mama, Educator and Entrepreneur.