Gap between Ontario drivers who see importance of winter tires and actually installing them

The majority of Ontario drivers understand the importance of snow tires for safer driving, but only about half actually install them on their own vehicles, according to a new survey commissioned by Centennial College’s School of Transportation.

Among just over 800 Ontario drivers surveyed online in mid-November, 79% said that snow tires create a safer winter driving experience, with 87% also understanding that all-wheel drive vehicles also require the special tires.

Still, only 53% of drivers in the province actually install snow tires, the survey suggests. 

A slightly higher percentage of women install the tires (55% compared with 52% of men). That’s despite a higher percentage of women (47%) than men (28%) saying they get nervous and stressed about winter driving.

Forty percent of men also say they are confident in their winter driving skills, compared with only 16% of women surveyed.

Overall, 44% of drivers between 18 and 34 say winter driving makes them stressed, compared with only 31% for those 55 and older.

Among those surveyed with personal incomes of more than $100,000 annually, 42% reported being confident in their winter driving skills.

Drivers in eastern Ontario are most likely to install snow tires at 69%, which Centennial suggests might be linked to neighbouring Quebec being the only province to legally require their use.

“The vast majority of Ontario drivers know they should use winter tires but only half do so,” Stephen Leroux, a Centennial College automotive professor commented in a statement on the survey results. “This truly is a conundrum for all road users.”