Tips On Driving During The Eclipse

There is much anticipation of the eclipse that is coming this Monday.  Many parts of Texas will experience eclipse totality.  Where I live in the Dallas-Fort Worth area, we are in the path of complete darkness for a little over 4-minutes as are our listeners in the Austin & Central Texas, San Antonio, near Houston and all points in between.  I’ve been very surprised by the number of listeners all over the country who are planning trips to North Texas for this April 8^th event.  Hotel room in DFW are 99% sold out this entire weekend.

Credit: TxDOT.

It dawned on me that it was inevitable that many people will be on the roads when we are cast into near total darkness.  So, what do you do if you find yourself behind the wheel during this extremely rare event?  Curiosity might make you want to look at the eclipse, taking your eyes off the road, but resist the temptation.  Experts expect traffic in the path of the eclipse to be extremely heavy, especially after the event when everyone leaves at one time.

The Texas Department of Transportation has been planning for this event for two years:

• The agency will be flashing messages on highways that say:  "NO STOPPING ON HIGHWAY TO VIEW ECLIPSE" and "NO PARKING ON SHOULDER, KEEP MOVING."
• Crews are also pausing some road construction and maintenance work on major corridors in the path of the eclipse April 7-9, based on traffic volumes.

TXDOT offers these tips if you find yourself behind the wheel Monday during the eclipse:

• Expect sudden stops by drivers.
• Watch out for distracted pedestrians looking to the sky.
• Keep your headlights on while driving, even in the daylight.
• Do not wear eclipse glasses while driving.
• Find a safe, designated space to park before the eclipse. Do not stop in the middle of the road or on a road shoulder.

"If you do happen to be on the roads during the eclipse, please be aware that the sky may darken suddenly and other drivers may be distracted," said an Austin, TX traffic department bulletin. "Keep your focus on the road and only view the eclipse once safely parked away from the flow of traffic."

Common Sense Thoughts

Just some common sense things that are rattling around in the head of your Car Pro:

• Prepare for traffic as if it was a holiday or other major event like a Super Bowl.  Plan to leave early if you have to be out and leave yourself plenty of time to get where you are going.
• If your car doesn’t have automatic headlights, plan to turn your headlights on during total darkness.
• Do NOT try to drive with eclipse glasses on.
• Drive with your car’s sun visor down to avoid looking at the eclipse and damaging your eyes.
• Be aware of pedestrians who may be looking up instead of where they are going.
• Watch for the car in front of you suddenly stopping when the driver sees the eclipse.
• Expect a heavy presence of law enforcement officers and public safety personnel.
• People in smaller towns could be affected even more by traffic and the lack of public safety officials.
• Cell phone usage will likely be high and calls difficult to make, but if needed, 9-1-1 should be fine.

The media is really hyping this event up since it is such a rare occurrence.  Just use your head, stay aware of your surroundings, and realize there will be a lot of people parked in places they should not be.