Question

When driving on wet roads, you should increase the following distance to ___ seconds.

1) 1
2) 2
3) 3
4) 4

Answer 1

To ensure safety on wet roads, the following distance should be increased to 4 seconds. This accounts for longer stopping distances due to the road conditions and driver reaction time.

Step-by-step explanation:

When driving on wet roads, you should increase the following distance to 4 seconds. This allows for a safe distance between your car and the car in front of you, taking into account the increased stopping distance required on wet pavement. Considering the reaction time and the braking distance on wet surfaces, a longer following distance is needed to ensure safety.

For a car traveling at 30.0 m/s with a reaction time of 0.500 s, the total displacement on wet concrete is the sum of the distance traveled during the reaction time and the braking distance. During the reaction time, the car travels 15.0 meters, assuming constant velocity. Therefore, the total distance to come to a stop on wet concrete is significantly greater than on dry pavement.