More than half of B.C. motorists plan to get out on the highway this summer, but are they properly prepared for a safe road trip?
The British Columbia Automobile Association's recently conducted its Summer Road Travel Trends survey. According to the Ipsos Reid survey, most B.C. motorists take road safety and road trip preparation seriously, with 65 per cent saying they get their vehicle serviced before they head out on the highway.
However, 33 per cent of respondents aged 18 to 34 years don't bother to get their vehicle serviced, because they don't expect anything bad to happen to their vehicle. In fact, 41 per cent of 18 to 34-yearolds say they spend more time packing the car and picking music for their road trip than checking the safety of their vehicle.
"While our survey results show that the majority of motorists get their cars serviced before a road trip, 65 per cent is still low considering that their entire vacation revolves around the reliability of their car," Ken Cousin, the association's associate vice-president of Road Assist, said in a press release.
As for travel insurance, 73 per cent of respondents say they always ensure they have travel medical coverage for long trips.
However, 22 per cent admit they sometimes take short trips across the border without travel medical insurance because they feel nothing will happen during a short time period. That number is significantly higher among 18 to 35-year-olds, with 35 per cent willing to visit the U.S. without coverage.
For advice on how to plan ahead and prepare your vehicle before a road trip, along with what emergency items to carry, visit bcaa.com/roadtriptips.
