GLADSTONE — The clouds grow heavy and the cold air blows — giving the Upper Peninsula the wintery welcome of snow and with it the inevitable slippery roads and white-knuckling of the steering wheel.

Community Service Trooper Dale Hongisto, of the Michigan State Police Gladstone Post, provides advice for drivers in the area on how to safely get around in the snow.

Snow comes and goes, so residents have to readjust to winter driving continuously. Hongisto said the first snowfall this year wasn’t too bad with minimal cars in the ditch and no major accidents in our area.

With more snow to come, he said some main things drivers can do to avoid accidents is to give yourself more time for driving, drive slower, allow more distance to stop and don’t follow others on the road too closely.

“We are dealing with — obviously — snowy, icy roads with the potential of black ice,” Hongisto said.

Social media is full of people complaining about people who drive slow when snow hits, but Hongisto said the people who are driving slower are the ones who actually know how to drive in the snow.

“Just because the speed limit is 55 — the conditions might warrant going 40 or 45,” he said. “That speed limit sign is a guide — if there is black ice you’re not going to go 55. Drive according to the road conditions.”

Hongisto said drivers in the local area really need to keep an eye out for black ice. He said because the local area doesn’t get as much snow as farther north, cold winters here tend to produce more ice.

Another thing drivers can do to drive safely this winter is to defrost and clear their vehicle windows so they can see clearly in every direction.

“You want to make sure your vehicle windows are properly defrosted and cleared of ice and snow — whether it is the front window, side windows or back window. We see it every year, right? You’ve probably seen it. People going down the road and they got one little hole cleared out,” he said.

He also warned drivers that they can be ticketed for driving with their windows not properly cleared or defrosted.

One of the final words of advice Hongisto gave was drivers should always have their headlights on, especially when it is cloudy or snowy due to limited visibility.