SALT LAKE CITY — The summer vacation season is officially underway.

The additional road congestion of summer travel creates more safety hazards than usual, but with a little safety-planning, you can minimize your chances of being detoured by a roadside emergency. Below are some tips from AAA of Utah to help you and your family arrive safely at your vacation destination.

Proper vehicle maintenance

Before setting out on the road, spend some time making sure your vehicle is in tip-top condition.

• Check tire wear and pressure, including the spare.
• Clean battery connections and tighten cables.
• Check coolant and oil levels and condition.
• Clean windshield wiper blades and replace if necessary.
• Refill window-washer fluid.
• Consider getting a full-service tune-up at least a week prior to departure. This will help you burn less gas, improve emissions and reduce the chance that you will encounter any major maintenance issues on the road.
• Check hoses and belts for bulges, wear or cracking.

Pretrip safety planning

While mapping out your road trip route and itinerary, take a few minutes to familiarize yourself with local weather reports and traffic laws (if traveling out of state). For additional safety, be sure to give a copy of your itinerary and contact information to a close friend or family member in case you need to be reached.

As an added precaution, take steps to make your home look lived-in while you’re away. This includes putting newspapers on hold, making arrangements for mail to be picked up and placing lights on a timer. And, tempting as it might be to post those great vacation photos and messages online, save them until you have returned home. You can protect yourself by limiting the number of people who know the precise timeframe you will be away from home.

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Pack for emergencies

Selecting the appropriate wardrobe for your trip is not the only packing that should take place. Safe drivers also pack various roadside fundamentals so they are prepared for any situation they may encounter on the road. These fundamentals include:

• Emergency supplies, such as a flashlight, batteries, first aid kit, jumper cables and basic tools.
• Your cellphone loaded with important phone numbers you’ll need for the trip, such as reservation hotlines or campground offices. And don’t forget the phone charger!
• Extra blankets or sweatshirts to help avoid arguments if the air conditioning is too cool for some temperature-sensitive passengers (also if stranded at night, to provide warmth).
• Music recordings or audio books to help make those long stretches of road not feel so long.
• A list of classic car games, such as 20 Questions, Roadside Bingo or the License Plate game to break out when passengers need to be entertained or mentally stimulated.
• An extra set of car keys, because you don’t want long delays if lose your keys or lock them in the car.

Road trip-driving safety tips

The casual nature of a long road trip makes it easy to ignore basic car- safety rules. However, it’s necessary to continue following these guidelines, and insist that your passengers do the same, to maintain personal safety while on the road.

• Always wear a seat belt.
• Stay rested and alert, and avoid driving while you are tired (stop every two hours or 100 miles and get out of the vehicle and walk around to prevent road fatigue).
• Make sure children are buckled properly and are in appropriate car seats.
• Put away cellphones and focus on driving.
• Use cruise control on the highways, when possible, to maintain a safe speed and maximize fuel economy.
• Stay on main roads and highways.
• Turn on headlights as dusk approaches.
• Always lock vehicle doors when stopping for breaks, no matter how brief.
• Keep all things of value out of sight by storing them in the trunk or in a covered area.
• Don’t stop to help motorists of disabled vehicles; keep everyone out of harm’s way by calling for help from your cellphone or a pay phone.

Handling a roadside breakdown

No matter how well prepared you are for a road trip, unexpected things will happen. In the event you break down along the road, here are a few things you and your passengers should do until help arrives on the scene:

• Move your vehicle from the road and safely away from traffic.
• Always remain in a group, even if you have to walk to a phone.
• Warn other drivers by raising the vehicle hood, tying a white cloth to a door handle or using reflective triangles or flares.
• Place warning devices far enough away from the vehicle to give oncoming traffic time to react.

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Rolayne Fairclough handles media relations, government relations and community involvement for AAA Utah.

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