Rural areas in Kentucky can be gorgeous to drive through once Autumn arrives. You’ll see more beautiful colors in the countryside as you make your way towards your destination. You also won’t have to deal with as much back to school traffic as the urban areas of the state are experiencing.
However, the lack of traffic and maintenance can also make these streets especially dangerous in the latter months of the year. If the roads near the farms, forests and fields are part of your daily commuter, you need to know what to keep your eyes out for:
Cool mornings and wet leaves
It may not be winter yet, but the roads can still get very slippery during the fall. In addition to the rainy days, you’ll deal with the morning frost in the shaded parts of the road. You’ll need to make sure your tires are ready to deal with the decreasing temperatures.
While the leaves are beautiful to look at, they can get as slippery as ice after a rainstorm. You’re more likely to come across scattered leaves on the road in rural areas because there isn’t someone around to rake them up and there won’t be many people driving there to push them to the side. Try not to stay too close to the edge if you come across this hazard. Not only does it become difficult to steer, but you also don’t know what the leaves are covering up.
Deer crossings
Autumn is the prime season for deer to show up on the road. Kentucky residents have a 1 in 100 chance of hitting a deer on the road between October through December. Rural roads are where you’ll most likely encounter them since they frequently travel between forests and fields during mating season. Make sure your headlights are working correctly and try to slow down if you encounter one. Swerving increases your chance to crash into something else like a tree or another driver.
Unfortunately, many Kentucky drivers don’t know how to appropriately react when they come across a deer or wet leaves on the road. If you suffer as a result of their negligence, contact someone who has experience helping residents seek compensation for auto accidents.