Somerset is a beautiful area with popular tourist destinations, which means that there may be an uptick of auto accidents in the spring and summer months as the temperatures rise and more people head to Lake Cumberland.
Preventing car crashes with tourists can be difficult, but you do have options that could help you stay safer as traffic begins to become more congested.
Traffic congestion has an impact on Somerset
As traffic congestion increases, the likelihood of crashes and the frequency of those crashes increases as well. Before you go out, it’s a smart idea to listen to the radio or to look up the traffic report, so you know if you need to avoid a main highway and take back roads or if you can expect traffic to flow as usual.
On special days, like the opening day at a marina nearby, you may want to plan to stay home or avoid that area. It’s highly likely that there will be an increase in traffic around events, so for your own safety, avoid those areas or use lesser-known roads to get to your destination.
Be prepared to slow your rate of travel
One of the reasons that crashes happen is because of road rage. Aggressive driving due to road rage may lead to more collisions as drivers cut each other off in traffic or decide to speed on a road where they may need to slow down or stop to allow others to pass.
To keep yourself safe, plan for additional time in your commute. A commute that used to take you 30 or 40 minutes may take an hour or longer when you run into tourist traffic, so keep that in mind and be prepared for the extra time it will take you to get to your destination.
Tourists and drivers unfamiliar with the area could cause crashes, so it’s important to be aware of your surroundings and to be prepared for people to make mistakes. Some parts of Somerset can be difficult to maneuver through, so be prepared to stop or react to drivers who make errors due to being unfamiliar with the local traffic patterns.
