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Difficulty: MediumAdjusting Margins in Fog and High Winds

You are travelling across an elevated river viaduct where patchy fog reduces visibility to less than 100 metres and strong crosswinds cause vehicle buffeting. Which TWO actions should you take to maintain safe margins?

  1. Operate your fog lights while visibility remains severely impaired, switching them off once conditions improve.Answer
  2. Substantially increase your following distance from the vehicle ahead.Answer
  3. C
    Drive closely behind the leading vehicle to follow its rear lights through the fog.
  4. D
    Maintain the standard two-second following gap because high winds only affect steering, not braking distance.

Answer

Use fog lights when visibility is under 100 metres (turning them off when it improves) and substantially increase following distance.
In dense fog where visibility drops below 100 metres, using fog lights ensures you can see and be seen, provided they are switched off once visibility improves to prevent dazzling other drivers. Additionally, expanding your following distance creates an essential safety buffer to react safely to sudden braking or wind-induced vehicle swerving.

Step-by-Step Solution

1
Assess lighting requirements under Highway Code Rule 226
Activate fog lights because forward visibility is below the 100-metre threshold, planning to turn them off once visibility clears
Fog lights make your vehicle conspicuous to other road users without dazzling them once conditions recover
2
Adjust longitudinal and lateral safety margins for combined fog and wind hazards
Increase the separation gap beyond standard dry-weather following distance
Reduced visibility delays hazard detection while wind turbulence causes vehicle instability, demanding greater braking and thinking margins

Key Concept

Adjusting lighting and following margins in fog and high crosswinds
Estimated Time:1m 0s
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Topics

Adjusting Margins in Fog and High Winds

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