Clear windows

Driver of semi-truck sitting and driving his vehicle. Concept of shipping and delivering.

It should go without saying that you need to have a clear view of everything while driving. Unfortunately, too many drivers have reduced the usable area of the windshield and side windows with curtains, stickers, phone and GPS mounts, and in some cases, tablets being used as movie screens while they’re driving. 

According to the highway traffic act, anything mounted on the windshield, or mounted in a way that obstructs the driver’s view is illegal. While this law is seldom enforced, if your windshield or side windows are severely blocked, you will get pulled over. Mount your phone holder and GPS towards the bottom of the windshield so they are not blocking your view of the road, rather they are in the area between your eyes and the hood of the truck. 

If the sun is coming in through the side window, use the sun visor, and aviator style sunglasses. Do not use the privacy curtain to block part of the window.  Do not store paperwork, or anything on the dashboard, as the reflection on the windshield can be very distracting, as well as causing eye strain as your brain tries to differentiate between what’s on the road and what’s being reflected on the windshield. 

Clean the inside of the glass regularly, especially if you’re a smoker. During the winter nights, the inside of the windows will become wet with condensation, which will deposit airborne dust and dirt (and smoke) particles on the inside of the glass. It’s an annoyance at the best of times, but when driving directly into the sun, it can leave you totally blind, usually at the worst possible moment. 

If your windshield becomes cracked in the path of the driver’s side wiper, or if you get a stone chip larger than a quarter, it must be replaced as soon as possible. Driving with a windshield in this condition is an out of service violation, and getting a windshield replaced at an inspection station is not inexpensive.