When driving in bad weather, drivers should:
- Increase their speed to reach their final destination more quickly.
- Decrease their following distance.
- Increase their following distance. ✓
- None of the above.
Answer: C. Increase their following distance.
When driving in bad weather, you should increase your following distance.
Why this is the answer
The handbook says rear-end crashes are almost always caused by following too closely, and that more space gives you more time to react. It sets a four-second minimum in good conditions and tells you to add distance when weather or traffic is unfavorable. The rain section repeats this: wet roads lengthen your stopping distance, so leave more room ahead. Speeding is also tied to hydroplaning risk, which is another reason not to push your speed up.
Why the other answers are wrong
- A. Increase their speed to reach their final destination more quickly. — Speeding up is the opposite of what the handbook advises, since it says to slow down in rain and notes that speeding raises the chance of hydroplaning.
- B. Decrease their following distance. — Shortening your following distance puts you closer to the vehicle ahead, which is exactly the habit the handbook links to rear-end collisions.
- D. None of the above. — This is wrong because the handbook does give a clear instruction for bad weather, which is to leave more space between you and the vehicle in front.
Remember it
Think of bad weather as a reason to add seconds, not speed: the worse the conditions, the bigger the gap.