On slippery roads, you should:
- Slow down. ✓
- Drive more quickly.
- Drive the speed limit, with caution.
- Not drive more quickly than 20 mph.
Answer: A. Slow down.
On slippery roads, you should slow down.
Why this is the answer
The handbook's rain section says plainly to slow down, because rain makes roads slick, especially after a dry spell when oil has built up. Wet roads also lengthen the distance you need to stop, so you should leave more room behind the vehicle ahead. The slippery surface sign gives the same advice for wet weather: drive slowly, avoid speeding up or braking quickly, and take turns at slow speeds. Matching your speed to the slippery surface is what keeps your tires gripping instead of sliding.
Why the other answers are wrong
- B. Drive more quickly. — Speeding up on a slick road works against the handbook's warning to avoid quick acceleration, and speeding raises the chance of hydroplaning.
- C. Drive the speed limit, with caution. — Keeping the posted speed limit ignores the handbook's instruction to slow down when the road is wet and slick.
- D. Not drive more quickly than 20 mph. — The passages give no 20 mph figure for slippery roads; the guidance is simply to drive slowly rather than at any set number.
Remember it
When water is on the road, your speed goes down and your following distance goes up.