Motoring News

SBT MOTORING NEWS

YOUR CAR & CORONAVIRUS

WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW

USING YOUR VEHICLE POST LOCKDOWN

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Your Car and Coronavirus – What you need to know

Covid -19 or coronavirus is the subject on everyone’s mind at the moment. The official government and health organisations websites will hold the latest updates and developments however we wanted to offer some advice to drivers concerned about the cleanliness of their vehicles during this pandemic.

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Now I’m sure by now that everyone has performed a deep clean to home or workspace... Have you done the same for your car?

The advice is simple and quite straightforward, clean and clean again after use. By following this simple format, you will ensure that your vehicle is clean internally at the start of any journey.

High contact surface areas

What we do know is that the virus is more likely to spread from contact with uncleaned surfaces where an infected individual has been. Our cars can be a perfect home for germs to live with all the stuff from outside making its way inside in some way shape or form. Think of all the surface areas within your vehicle where the human contact traffic is high – the steering wheel, the gear stick, handles, touch screens or if you’re like me and constantly turning the volume nob up and down when a ‘big chooooon’ plays. Start your deep clean here, disinfecting these surfaces with a suitable product, paying particular attention to any manufacturer guidelines. Make sure you wash your hands before cleaning and if you are doing a deep clean you may even want to wear some disposable gloves too. We recommend Dettol wipes or something similar that has the chemical power to kill surface germs. If in doubt use soap and water and with disposable wipes. Once you

have completed the inside of the vehicle you will also want to address the outside areas such as door handles and the boot lip which we

touch multiple times. Going through

a machine car wash isn’t enough, you’ll need to get in there and give it a proper clean.

Low contact surface areas

What we cannot do in this situation is forget the obvious. If like most your aggression and confidence can at times be quite uncharacteristic when behind the wheel its likely you’ve either been singing at the top of your lungs or shouting at another driver equally loud! That interior side of

your windscreen has been getting

splashed with all the extra stuff that comes out of your mouth and your passengers, including any horrendous sneezes that you didn’t manage to take your hands off the steering wheel for! This needs a good clean, even though you don’t touch it as much it can still contain a heavy level of germ and what’s more, you’ll probably have better road vision after its cleaned. We recommend a suitable glass cleaner once you have washed it down with soap and water or a disinfectant, and while you are at it do your other internal glass too, such as your driver and passenger windows as well as your panoramic roof and boot.

Passenger and storage areas

Most doors have arm rest type ergonomic handles so these especially need a good clean. Most of the time, I get in and out of my vehicles through the doors, unless I’m feeling heroic, so the touch traffic of these areas of the vehicle are high. Kids seats are already full of crumbs and only God know what else so it would also be wise to remove these and include them in a deep clean. Most car seats have removable material that can be put into a washing machine which is certainly a good idea. Remember that arm rests in the middle rear passenger row that rarely comes down? Clean that too. The boot is the one area that we are all guilty of throwing a bunch of stuff into and forgetting about it, well now is a great time to get that stuff out and clean. Sort through the stuff if you don’t need it in the vehicle then get rid of it, the less stuff in there the lower the risk.

• Keep some cleaning products in the car.

If you can get hold of it, anti-bac hand gels and wipes. • Do it right away

If someone sneezes or you have passenger who has any suspect symptoms, clean after them right away. Any delay on increases the chance of you or someone else coming into contact with these germs. • Avoid unnecessary journey’s

Do you really need to go to the supermarket and buy some chocolate sprinkles? If it can wait or be delivered, opt for that. The more people and places you interact with the higher the chance of spread.

Remember

The advice is simple and quite straightforward, clean and clean again after use. By following this simple format, you will ensure that your vehicle is clean internally at the start of any journey.

Using your vehicle post lockdown?

With the first signs of the UK beginning to relax lockdown sanctions many are questioning what the future will hold for driving? Will it be a free-for-all with the roads resuming rush hours and high traffic levels or will we see more people opt for walking and cycling? It has been reported in a recent survey conducted by the AA that 20% of drivers will reduce their vehicle use after coronavirus lockdown ends.

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For many the lockdown sanctions have forced us to revisit or introduce ourselves to other methods of basic transport. Those lucky enough to have a bike or foot scooter certainly made the most of it, Halfords reported huge increases in bicycle purchases since the middle of March. For those who couldn’t access a bike, walking, jogging and running were the only options and it seems that for many the enjoyment of these activities may stick.

AA survey

The reductions in vehicle use could be significant to the environment, as previously reported the lockdown has

seen positive impacts to air quality

with the large decrease in pollution emitting engines roaming the streets. As lockdown sanctions are slowly lifted we are all waiting to find out what the guidelines will be around commuting and public transport once we are told it is safe for everyone to return to work. What we do know right now is that people do not want to go on public transport unless they have to in fear of contracting the virus, which could of course impact the amount of commuters opting for other means of transport. The question at this stage is will people opt for their cars or continue to walk, cycle and jog?

Read more: Lockdown leads to positive impact on environment

The change in our lifestyles has sparked many questions around how people will spend their time moving forward with 40% of those surveyed

suggesting they will spend more time seeing family and 40% saying they will continue to do more activities

outside. Working from home is likely to continue to be the norm for sometime moving forward again supporting the statistics that drivers will use their vehicles less. Some drivers who have worked throughout the lockdown period have enjoyed quitter traffic free roads, the ease of these journeys may prompt people to reconsider when and how they commute to avoid peak times.

Currently it’s important to remember that lockdown has not been lifted and the following rules still apply: • Going to a shop or pharmacy for groceries or medicine. • Travelling to work where your work is

essential and you cannot do it from home • Travelling for medical reasons, either for yourself or to care for a vulnerable person where there is no alternative help • Taking your child to school. This applies to children classified as “vulnerable” and the children of key workers. It also applies to children whose parents do not live together, allowing for them to be moved between parents’ homes.

Read more: Driving during lockdown

From Monday, May 11, in England you can now drive to get to work if you cannot work from home, even if your job is not classified as “essential”. The Government advises those who cannot work from home should be actively encouraged to return to work but should avoid public transport.

In England, from Wednesday, May 13, you will be able to drive to another location for exercise “irrespective of distance” as long as you respect social distancing guidance.