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Your Very Detailed Guide to Safe Summer Road Trips
The good news: Cars may be the safest way to go right now — just pack your hand sanitizer
As states begin to reopen, and air travel remains risky, travelers and health experts alike seem to agree that this may well be the Summer of the Road Trip.
“Out of all the possible travel scenarios, a road trip has to be one of the best options,” says Jack Caravanos, DrPh, a clinical professor of environmental public health sciences at New York University School of Global Public Health. “Rental cars are heavily sanitized these days and of course, if it’s your own car you know it’s a safe environment.”
Still, traveling safely during this time will require much more planning than usual, says Marissa Levine, MD, the director of the Center for Leadership in Public Health Practice at the University of Southern Florida. “It’s going to take a lot to create your best trip while also being adaptable to uncertainty.”
Here’s what you need to know.
Navigating rental cars
In response to concerns about the coronavirus, most rental car companies are taking serious cleaning and disinfecting measures. Hertz recently announced that all cars will receive its “Gold Standard Clean,” an in-depth, CDC-compliant cleaning and disinfecting procedure. National launched a similar initiative with its “Complete Clean Pledge” and Avis also advertises an in-depth cleaning protocol on its site. Before booking a rental car, it’s worth doing some research to verify that the rental company you’re considering is going the extra mile to sanitize vehicles between customers.
If you want to err on the side of caution, you could drive with the windows down in a rental car if it makes you feel more comfortable. However, multiple experts note that this is really not really necessary. “We don’t see much evidence of the virus living in the air of the car or in the ducts of the vents,” says Kumi Smith, PhD, an assistant professor of epidemiology and community health at the University of Minnesota. “From what I know right now, I personally wouldn’t be too concerned about driving with the AC on in a car or driving with the windows up.”
