How to Safely Drive on Black Ice and Avoid Accidents

Wintertime driving can be dangerous, and it’s an unfortunate reality for roughly 70% of the country. Every year, about 117,000 people are injured and more than 1,300 die in accidents on snowy and icy roads.^[1]

Black ice is a culprit in creating unsafe driving conditions because it’s often impossible to see until it’s too late. But you can do plenty of things to protect yourself, including learning how to drive on black ice.

What is black ice?

Black ice is a very thin layer of ice that coats road surfaces. It’s called “black” ice because when it forms on asphalt pavement, it looks black, just like the underlying road surface. However, the ice itself is clear.^[2] You often can’t see it when you’re driving, but it still creates the same effect of driving onto an ice rink.

Black ice forms when there’s liquid water in the environment and temperatures on the road surface dip below 32 degrees Fahrenheit, the freezing point. The liquid can come from a few different places, such as melting snow, rain, or even just condensation or fog in the air.

When temperatures drop below freezing, the water freezes solid into a clear, transparent sheet. This usually happens at night and early in the morning, before the sun warms up the roadway surface.^[2]

Black ice can also form where it might be cooler than surrounding roadways, like on top of bridges and overpasses, on less-traveled roads, and on shaded roadways.

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How to avoid black ice

The easiest way to avoid black ice is to know when and where it forms and then avoid those places when you suspect it might be a problem.

If you’re driving to and from places with regular winter weather events, like mountains, don’t do it after a late-winter rainstorm. Wait until the temperature warms up, and even then, time your travel for midday instead of late at night or first thing in the morning.

If you can’t avoid driving when the chance of black ice is likely, keep your eyes peeled for the signs. Turn your headlights on and scan for a telltale icy glare from the road surface. Pay especially close attention when you’re driving over parts of the road that might be colder, like shaded areas and bridges.^[3]

If you can, try to take an alternate, safer route. Instead of taking the scenic route through windy canyons, stick to more well-traveled main roads. Avoid roads with steep hills and sharp turns if possible.

7 tips for driving on black ice

You can’t always entirely avoid driving on black ice. Sometimes, you need to get to work early in the morning, or there are no alternate routes to your destination. If you do find yourself driving in areas where black ice might be, here are some tips for staying safe:

1. Practice driving on ice when it’s safe. Don’t wait until you’re already skidding to learn what to do. Go to an empty lot on a snowy, icy day to practice driving and braking. Learn how your car handles these conditions, what a skid feels like, and how to get out of it.

2. Consider your tires. Make sure your tires have plenty of traction going into winter since bald tires slip much more easily. If you live in an area with snow and ice all winter long, consider purchasing winter or studded tires.

3. Drive slower. If you slide out of control, it’ll be easier to regain control if you’re driving slowly. And if you do end up sliding into something, at least it’ll cause less damage or be easier to get unstuck.

4. Drive in higher-traction areas. If you can see obvious glare from black ice, try steering gently onto areas with more traction. If tracks from passing cars are icy, for example, try driving just to the side so that your tires are actually traveling over snow, sand, or other non-icy pavement.

5. Take your foot off the accelerator. When your foot is on the gas pedal, your tires spin, which can make it harder to regain control. Instead, take your foot off the gas so your tires stop spinning as much, which will help you regain traction.

6. Steer into the skid. Don’t try to counter the skid by steering away from it, which can make things worse. Turn the steering wheel slowly in the direction you want to go. If your back end skids to the left, for example, gently turn your wheel left too.

7. Brake appropriately. Don’t slam on the brakes at the first sign of a skid. Only use the brakes as a last resort if you’re going to hit something or go off the roadway. Then, if you have antilock brakes (ABS), press the brake pedal down firmly and hold it. If you don’t have ABS, quickly pump your brakes.^{[3] [4] [5] [6]}

Read More: 8 Tips to Get Over Driving Anxiety and Overcome Fear

What to do if you lose control on black ice

If you lose control while driving on black ice, try your best to aim for safe areas. As soon as your tires leave the icy roadway, you might not be able to stop moving off the road — but you might get a few precious moments to steer into a soft snowbank instead of another car.

If you’ve crashed into another object or a snowbank, take a breath and try to stay calm while you assess the situation. Put on your hazard lights, and if it’s safe to get out, call emergency services.^[7] Be careful if you’re on a busy roadway since you can easily be involved in a pileup or be hit by another car.

Be aware that even though the black ice might have caused you to crash, you could still be held liable. That’s because, legally speaking, you’re responsible for driving your vehicle safely regardless of the conditions — including on black ice.

If you’re the at-fault driver in an accident on black ice, a few different types of insurance policies could come into play, depending on the state you live in and the details of the accident:

• Bodily injury liability coverage: This can help pay for injuries to people outside of your own car.

• Property damage liability coverage: This coverage pays for the damage you cause to someone else’s vehicle or property.

• Medical payment or personal injury protection: This helps cover the cost of your own medical bills if you or your passengers are injured.

• Collision coverage: This pays to fix your vehicle if you run into most other things, including other cars, trees, or buildings.

Driving on black ice FAQs

Here are answers to some commonly asked questions about driving on black ice.