Driving safely on slippery or wet surfaces

When driving on wet or slippery road, make sure you have enough following distance to be safe. This means having plenty of gap between you and the vehicle you are following to be sure you have enough time to stop and avoid hitting the vehicle you’re following if it stops suddenly. Many countries use the 2-second rule — count “one-thousand-and-one, two-thousand-and-two” between a point on the road that the car in your front passes until you pass the same point. It’s advisable to double this distance when driving on wet roads. That means using a 4-second rule as gap to the vehicle you are following. If you are driving a heavy vehicle you must increase this gap even further.

If you’ve just driven through floods or very deep water, then you need to be aware that your brakes might provide less to very little braking power when wet, and so you should dry them immediately by lightly applying the brakes while continuing to drive. You only need to do this a few seconds until you feel the braking pressure increase. The friction and heat from the brakes dries the discs or brake shoes quickly.

If you’re riding a motorcycle be aware that painted lines and manhole covers could be very slippery when wet, and oil and grime will lengthen your braking distance. Use your brakes gently. If possible, use your gears to slow yourself down.