How beautiful are the autumn leaves on the roads, isn’t it? A parade of colors everywhere, which often tempts you to grab your camera (or mobile phone) and take an autumn photo of your car. But there is a downside to a lot of tree leaves on the asphalt.
When folded on the wet and sticky layer of wood leaves, the braking distance and braking distance of vehicles can be increased and sliding is easier. For this reason, you should pay attention to direction changes and turns, as well as using the brakes, on wooded road sections, as the car may behave differently than it is used to on dry roads. In addition, if the tree leaves are wet, the danger increases many times over, as with snow, the grip properties of the tire deteriorate. The flip side of the danger is that tree leaves can cover road markings (this makes it difficult for those without local knowledge of the specific road section), and can also cover pavement imperfections and deep potholes.
October and November are some of our “leafiest” months, so it is recommended to drive more carefully than usual in wooded areas and around orchards. This autumn phenomenon is especially dangerous for novice drivers, but motorcyclists should also pay more attention, as two wheels slip before four wheels.
The degree of slippage depends on a number of conditions: the thickness of the layer of fallen leaves, its moisture content, and the amount of rain that falls on it. Many car manufacturers have conducted tests on the sliding of wood panels. For example, Ford covered its test track in Belgium with wood panels and measured the change in slip using a friction tester. During testing, it was confirmed that wet leaves slid at least as much as snow.
source: Kreszvaltozas.hu
Image source(s): Pixabay
