 What happens when you combine the region's best network with a plan that requires no money down on the phone you choose, but also allows you to upgrade to the latest and greatest phone quicker than the traditional contract? You get the Appalachian Advantage, better service and bigger savings. Full payment plan requires historic details. Advantage requires no money down, taxes do a time of sale. Highway departments had their crew members ready to combat the winter storm as they took precautionary measures to keep our roads clear and safe. I spoke with the information officer of Highway District 12 as she provided helpful tips to drivers during the winter season. All the crews in our seven counties were out at five. At first the roads were just wet, but it seemed like within 20-30 minutes, whoa, the snow just dumped on us this morning and we had white pavement everywhere just within a matter of minutes. Of course our crews are always ready, they got all the trucks ready yesterday before they left and filled up with salt and liquid calcium chloride. It's five o'clock this morning, we've had 74 trucks, state trucks and 10 contract trucks out on the highways in our seven counties and they have been busy. Wet snow is more of a problem the next day, particularly if temperatures drop at night because you have so much moisture in the snow that it freezes and the next morning we have black ice. You have to pay attention to your surroundings when you're driving in bad weather, particularly in the mornings and evenings when visibility might be low anyway because it's dark or it's getting dark or it's just getting to be daylight. Make sure your headlights and taillights are cleaned off and that they're all working, you don't have something burn out because that can affect the other driver's ability to judge where you are on the road. When you were learning to drive, your parents always told you to drive defensively. It's even more important in bad weather. You'll have a harder time judging distance, normal markers on the road are covered up. Go slower, give yourself extra time to get where you're going. It's more important to be safe than it is to get there early or even on time. Your tire pressure can affect how well you can handle your vehicle if you hit a patch of black ice. If your tire pressure is low, you may lose control much easier, so take the time to get your tire pressure checked. It's probably the most important thing that you can do if you've already winterized your vehicle otherwise. Of course, the temperature can affect your tire pressure, so it may have been fine a couple of weeks ago, but it's important to check it often. Your side windows, your mirrors, your headlights and taillights, it's important to make sure that all those things are clean. We take care of each other around here in every situation imaginable except when we get on the road. We need to pay more attention to our surroundings and realize that people have a more difficult time pulling in and out of parking lots, judging distance, slowing down. When you run into a snow plow, if you're on a two-lane road, please don't try to pass them. They have to go a certain speed in order for that salt to spread evenly. They can't stop on a dime. They're big, huge, heavy machines. The snow plow driver will get out of your way as soon as he's able to. Give these guys room to work. Sometimes the safest place you can be is behind a plow because you're on the road in its best possible condition for the weather if you're behind a plow. So just use your common sense. It's not anything that you can't handle if you think about it and you're prepared and you're willing to be patient and take your time.